She Destroys with Another
by RuthlessStyleFreak
Summary: {Complete} A month after his death, Noah comes back to tell Rachel that Samara is going to try to take Rachel’s son to help her kill the watchers of the video. Will Rachel be able to keep her son away from Samara? REVIEW!
1. The Message on the Screen

Disclaimer: I don't own The Ring" or any of its characters. I'm just borrowing them for my story.  
  
~Chapter 1-The Message~  
  
Rachel Keller and her son Aiden were watching a movie on Friday night, or, Rachel was watching a movie. Aiden had fallen asleep about half an hour ago. As the credits came on, Rachel shut off the tape. She got up and took the tape out of the VCR. It seemed like so long ago that she was afraid for her son's, and her own, life. She still remembered the look on Noah, her 'boyfriend's,' face; so empty and deformed..so lifeless.  
  
An old sitcom was on. Rachel pushed the 'Channel Up' button, but she didn't see another program. She saw something she never wanted to see again. The screen went black..then a bright circle appeared. Rachel's eyes went wide. "No..no. It can't be," she whispered. "It's been a month. She can't come back." She glanced at Aiden. "We made a copy..we made a copy!"  
  
The circle remained on the screen, until Rachel saw a small black figure began walking towards her. She fell to the ground and started breathing deeply. "No, she can't come back."  
  
The figure got bigger, and Rachel recognized it. "Oh my god..Noah?"  
  
Noah, or what Samara had left him as, came closer...and closer....Rachel's eyes went, if possible, any wider. She scrambled over to Aiden and embraced him protectively. "Keep away from him," she said, hoarsely. "Keep away." Noah's face was perfectly clear now, and it pained her to look upon it.  
  
"Rachel.." The voice seemed to be coming from the television speakers. "Rachel, I'm not here to hurt you or Aiden. I'm here to warn you."  
  
Rachel shook her head, not believing what was in front of her. "W- what? Warn me about what?"  
  
"Samara. She is continuing to kill, so you and your son are safe from her, but she's...ummm, getting bored. She's getting lonely. She wants Aiden to help her kill the people who watch the video."  
  
"She....she..what?" Rachel stammered.  
  
"You heard me Rachel. Samara doesn't like doing this alone anymore."  
  
"How do you know?"  
  
"After she takes your life, you are stuck in the well.or your soul is. You can hear everything she says, everything she thinks, everything she does...I heard her. She said that she wants the boy who talked to her to help her with her 'quest.'  
  
Rachel's eyes filled with tears. "W-why does she want Aiden?"  
  
"He was the only one her age who talked to her.who understood her."  
  
Rachel swallowed. "I don't understand, Noah.."  
  
"Neither do I, Rachel.but I had to warn you. You have to leave here. Go somewhere.anywhere. Go to a place where she can't find you. If she comes to get him, go somewhere else. If she gets him, she will kill you, Rachel."  
  
"Noah, wait-" But she couldn't finish. Noah began to glow and then got sucked back into the television, as if he were being rewound. Then the screen went black, and flicked off.  
  
Rachel crawled over to the screen and began tapping it, but jerked around when she heard someone groaning. Aiden had woken up. He rubbed his eyes. "Mom? What's wrong?"  
  
"Get dressed and packed..NOW!" Rachel jumped to her feet and ran into her room. She threw her clothes and belongings into a suitcase and closed it. She stared at it for a second, tears beginning to form in her eyes once again. "I don't understand, Noah. But I'll do whatever I have to do to save my son from that child."  
  
"Mom?" Rachel turned around. Aiden was standing in the doorway, holding a suitcase. "Save me from who? The little girl?"  
  
As Rachel looked into his eyes, she began to sob. "Y-yes, honey. The little girl again. He have to get away from here."  
  
"Why, Mom? Why do we have to go?"  
  
Rachel stopped crying. "Because she knows that we're here. We have to go to a place where she can't get us. If she finds us, we run again."  
  
Aiden nodded. They ran out of the building and got into their car. Rachel drove, even though she had no idea where she was going.  
  
But, back in their apartment, on the floor below the television, was a pool of water, and on the screen was, not a ring, but a whole circle, and in the circle was the dreaded face of Samara. Then, out of the speakers came her voice. "Aiden...I will find you," it whispered, "you can't escape me..remember what I told you? I never sleep.."  
  
To Be Continued...  
  
A/N-So, do you like my first story ever? Please review, and no flames! 


	2. The Radio

Disclaimer: I don't own "The Ring." Pretty forward, huh? Oh, and thanks to Reva, Samm, BrokenLizard14, Samara Morgan, and Riot Gurl for reviewing my first chapters. Thanks again!  
  
Chapter 2-The Radio  
  
Aiden and Rachel ran down the stairs and jumped into her car. As they buckled their seat belts, Aiden looked at Rachel. "Mom, what's going on? Tell me the complete truth."  
  
Rachel looked at Aiden. "I..s-saw N-Noah," she stammered. "Or..w-what Samara did to-to Noah. He told me that..that.." She broke off, on the verge of tears. She inhaled deeply and closed her eyes. "..he told me that Samara wanted to take you away from me...to help her kill the people who watch the video."  
  
She slowly opened her eyes and looked at her son. His eyes were wide and he looked frozen. "Honey?" she asked, quietly.  
  
Aiden looked at her. "Mom?" he whispered. "Where are you planning on taking us?"  
  
Rachel swallowed. "Somewhere I hope she won't find us...like I said, if she does find us, we run." Aiden nodded. Rachel started the car and pulled out of her parking space. As she drove out of the parking garage, she had to decide where they were going to go. 'Oh shit..' she thought. 'I have NO idea where we're going to go at all..somewhere..somewhere without a way for her to get at us. Somewhere without a TV. Maybe...'  
  
Her thoughts were cut off by a crackling sound. She shook her head to clear her thoughts, thinking that the sound was in her head..but it was still there..a faint cracking sound..Rachel glanced at the radio The sound was nearly off, but not quite. She reached to turn the volume down when the knob slowly began to turn..slowly, slowly..until the volume almost all of the way up..  
  
Then, all of a sudden, an ear-pitching sound came out of the speakers. Rachel winced. She had heard that sound before..on the video. Rachel's heart began to race. Once again, she reached for the volume knob. As she came within a few centimeters of it, she received a slight electric shock.  
  
Rachel immediately pulled her hand back. "Damn," she whispered under her breath. She looked at her son, his face still set with fear. Suddenly, as quickly as it came, the ear-pitching sound stopped.and the car was quiet..until Rachel heard someone breathing. She looked at Aiden; his mouth was closed. She looked up and saw a semi-truck right in front of her.  
  
She swerved, just missing it. The breathing was still there. Then a voice came on. "How do you make these pictures, Samara?" Rachel gasped. It was a recording of the tape she had seen at Richard Morgan's house that night. Then Samara's voice came on, very clearly. "I don't MAKE them, I see them..then they just..are." Rachel's breathing became heavy. She reached for the 'seek' button and pushed it. "I love my mommy." Rachel gasped and then pushed the button again. "Of course you do, but you don't want to hurt your mommy anymore, do you, Samara?" Rachel pushed it again. "You don't want to hurt anybody." And again. "But, I do..and I'm sorry." Rachel drew her hand back. "It won't stop.." Rachel reached for the volume button and muted the sound, ignoring the shock...  
  
..Silence..Rachel sighed and rubbed her forehead. Suddenly, as loud as before, Samara's voice returned. "But it doesn't matter...because now I'll have a friend..won't I, Aiden? A good friend.."  
  
Aiden began to breathe as heavily as Rachel as the voice continued.  
  
"I won't hafta be alone anymore. I'll have someone with me to hurt all of the bad people who were mean to me...don't worry, Aiden...we'll have fun. It's fun hurting people."  
  
"NO!!!!!!!!" Rachel pulled over into a gas station and began to hit the radio, bursting into tears. "NO! NO! NO! I WON'T LET YOU!!!"  
  
But the voice continued, getting softer and softer. "Aiden! Aiden...aiden.." until it finally stopped, and another voice came on the radio: "And we'll be right back to Station 99.7 after these advertisements.."  
  
Rachel stopped hitting the radio and leaned back in her chair and continued to sob. She only stopped when she noticed that her shoes were wet. She took off her shoe and looked at it. It was soaked with some kind of green water. She smelled it..well water. "Oh my god..no."  
  
She leaned over and began to take off Aiden's shoe. As she pulled up his pant's leg, she saw Samara's hand print burned onto his ankle. She gasped. "Aiden, when did this happen?"  
  
Aiden looked at Rachel. "Just now.." he whispered. "But, she c-couldn't get me.."  
  
Rachel took off Aiden's shoe and looked at it. It too was soaked in well water, with a fingernail stuck in the shoelace...  
  
Suddenly, the ear-pitching sound came back on, closely followed by Samara's voice. "I'm coming...."  
  
To be continued...  
  
A/N-So, what do you think? Is it good? PLEASE review! PLEASE! Ok, thanks! 


	3. The Boat Ride

Disclaimer: Nope, I still own nothing.I own absolutely NOTHING from 'The Ring.' Actually, I'm kinda glad...owning 'The Ring' would be WAY too freaky!  
  
A/N-Many thanks to Samara Morgan, BrokenLizard14, Sammy-Chan, Alleajandra, and Riot Gurl for reviewing Chapter 2! THANKS GUYS!  
  
Chapter 3-The Boat Ride  
  
Rachel was driving as fast as she could. "Aiden," she gasped. "Did Samara tell you anything about HOW she kills people?"  
  
"Y-Yes," stammered Aiden. "She-She told me that she-she kills them by coming through the-the T.V."  
  
"The T.V.? Perfect!" Rachel turned around and drove towards the peer.  
  
"Mom? Where are you going?"  
  
"I'll explain it to you later, honey," she stated, before parking the car. "Follow me."  
  
Rachel and Aiden got out of the car, grabbed their suitcases and ran towards the water. Rachel began looking around. "I KNOW it's here! Where IS it? Aha!" She pointed towards a boat rental shop. She dashed over to the window, where a man, about in his late forties, was sitting. "Hello, sir, uhh..." She looked at his nametag: Bill. "Bill, my son and I would like to rent a boat for a while."  
  
He snorted. "How long are ya plannin' to be out thar?" He had a thick southern accent.  
  
"Well, how long can we have it?"  
  
"I'd say, uhh, maybe five h'rs at th' most, huney."  
  
"Only five hours?" Rachel sighed. "How much for five hours?"  
  
"Only sev'n bucks," he replied.  
  
She pulled out a fifty. "Tell you what," she said, waving the fifty around. "I'll let you have THIS, if we can have the boat for a day."  
  
"Fifty? Y'all would give ME a fifty just ta have th' boat out thar fer a day?"  
  
Rachel nodded. "Please, sir?"  
  
"Alright. But, make sure that ya take good care of it, 'kay? I don't really have insurance on any of them boats."  
  
"Okay, Bill, we'll be as careful as possible." Bill led Rachel and Aiden out to a runabout boat (basically, a boat that can go reasonably fast, and was about 20 feet long) named 'Sea Voices.' Rachel was a little uneasy; she hoped that there wouldn't be any 'sea voices.' "Umm, Bill? Who named these boats?"  
  
Bill stopped untying the boat and looked at her. "I did, ma'am. I got all of them names off of the television."  
  
"Oh, ok..." Rachel looked at the name. It still made her uneasy, but she figured that it would be better than staying on land where Samara could get them. Finally, Bill gave them all of the instructions, and they were free to go on the water, where they should be safe.  
  
As Rachel began to drive the boat out into the sea, Aiden looked at her, uneasily. "Uhh, Mom? Why are we out here on a boat?"  
  
"Well honey, you said that Samara only can come through televisions, so, since there ARE no televisions out here, I figure it'll be safe."  
  
"Mom," said Aiden, seriously. "I've told you a million times, she never sleeps...she'll keep trying. You know that."  
  
Rachel looked at her son. "That may be true, but she can't GET you, which is what we're trying to stop!" Aiden nodded.  
  
About half and hour later, Rachel anchored about 70 feet away from the shore. She looked at the sky; it was about afternoon now, and she was feeling a little hungry. She reached for her bag, which had some food in it, when she felt a slight jolt, and the whole boat swayed. She jerked her head up. "What the hell was that?" she whispered to herself.  
  
"Mom," Aiden whimpered. "Come here and look at this."  
  
Rachel rushed over to where Aiden was standing. She looked down to where he was pointing, and she choked out "oh my god!" right before the boat got hit again, harder, and she fell over. She peered over the side; in the water was a 40 foot shark! It was ramming the boat with its head. Rachel gasped. She scrambled over the driver's seat. She sat down, then tried to start the boat; nothing. She picked up the intercom (I think that's what it's called) and began trying to call for help. "Hello? Anyone?" she yelled into the intercom. "Help! Help! We're being attacked by a shark! Hello?" Silence. "HELLO?!"  
  
"Hello," came a voice out of the intercom.  
  
"Oh shit...no."  
  
It was Samara. "You thought that you could get away? You can never get away from me!"  
  
The boat took another hit from the shark. "YOU'RE DOING THIS, AREN'T YOU?!" screamed Rachel.  
  
"Yes."  
  
"WHY?!" Rachel was becoming hysterical.  
  
"Because. You took what I want away. I don't like that. And besides, I like seeing you like this, Rachel. It's funny seeing you get hurt."  
  
"NO! YOU CAN'T TAKE AIDEN AWAY!!! HE'S MY SON!"  
  
"Well, he's MY friend, and he won't need you. He'll be too busy killing everyone who hates us."  
  
"SAMARA, KEEP AWAY FROM HIM!"  
  
"No, he's mine, Rachel, and I promise, I'm going to get him." Then, all Rachel heard was static.  
  
"NO, NO, NO!!!" she screamed, bursting into tears. She sat on the floor of the boat as it got hit again. She didn't know what to do. Aiden came over and hugged her. Rachel looked around the boat and saw something; it was a pole, but it was sort of sharp at one end. Rachel got up and grabbed it. She walked over to the side of the boat and looked for the shark. It was gone...she glanced around the water until..BANG!  
  
The boat got hit again, and Rachel fell to the floor, cutting her hand on the pole. It began to bleed, and Rachel got another idea. She put her hand over the water and let the blood drip into the water. The shark smelled it, and swam over to the spot. As the shark came, Rachel raised the pole up into the air. It got closer, and closer, and closer, until it was right under her, then...she brought the pole down with all of her might. It killed the shark immediately. As the shark sunk to the bottom of the water, Rachel ran over and hugged her son.  
  
Aiden immediately saw her cut. "Mom, you're hurt!"  
  
"It'll be alright, it doesn't matter." Rachel squeezed Aiden harder.  
  
"Ma'am?" Rachel looked up and saw a Rescue boat with a man on it. "We got your call. My name is Jeff. Is everyone alright?"  
  
"Yes, I got a cut on my hand, but nothing else."  
  
"Good, but what happened to the shark?"  
  
"It was attacking the boat, so I killed it."  
  
"You did?" asked Jeff, raising an eyebrow,  
  
"Yes, to protect myself and my son."  
  
"Ok, well, did you happen to see what kind of shark it was?"  
  
"No, I was too busy being attacked by-"  
  
"Yes sir. It was a blue shark," interrupted Aiden.  
  
"Ok, thank you, son." Jeff pointed at Rachel. "You're VERY lucky that it wasn't an endangered species of shark, or you could be fined. I think you should go back."  
  
"We can't," said Rachel, who was VERY annoyed. "Our boat won't start."  
  
"Fine, then I'll tow you back."  
  
As they were towed away, out of the water emerged the head of Samara. "You can't escape, Aiden. You're MINE!!!!" she whispered, before disappearing back into the water...  
  
To Be Continued...  
  
A/N- there's chap. 3..now, REVIEW! I promise, if you review, I'll write more chapters! 


	4. Murder of Innocence

Disclaimer: I still don't own 'The Ring,' and I still don't want to. A/N-Thanks to lianeviolet, Riot Gurl, Sammy-chan, alleajandra, BrokenLizard14, and :-) for reviewing chapter 3!  
  
Chapter 4-Murder of Innocence  
  
As soon as they were pulled back to shore, Rachel and Aiden jumped out of the boat, and ran back to the car. "Ma'am!" Bill yelled after them. "Ma'am! YA WERE ON'Y OUT THAR HALF AN HOUR! DO YA WANT THE FIFTY BACK?"  
  
"NO!" Rachel yelled back. "KEEP IT!"  
  
Bill nodded, and walked back into the rental shack.  
  
Rachel and Aiden opened the car doors, and climbed in. Breathing heavily, Aiden asked, "M-Mom? What just happened?"  
  
"The little girl, Aiden. It was her again."  
  
Aiden gulped. "Why is she following us?"  
  
"Because she wants you, Aiden. But, she's not going to get you."  
  
Rachel was about to start the car, when she heard a man yell. "What the hell..." She was torn between seeing what was wrong, and leaving. She knew immediately that it was Bill who had screamed. "Honey, come with me," she said, uneasily. She and her son got out of the car and ran over to the rental shack.  
  
Rachel got to the door, and inhaled deeply. 'It's not Samara. He didn't watch the tape, so he can't be dead because of her,' she thought, before squeezing her eyes shut, and flinging open the door. As she opened her eyes, she saw Bill sitting in a chair, his back facing her. She slowly walked over to him, and turned him around.....  
  
"AAAAARH!" Bill snapped his eyes open, and looked up at Rachel. "WHAT DO YA THINK YOU'RE DOIN', MA'AM?!"  
  
Rachel sighed. "I just came back to....." Her voice was cut off by static from a T.V. inside the shack. Rachel glanced at it. "....I just came back to...." Suddenly, the picture on the T.V. changed to a field, and, right in the middle of the field, was a well.  
  
Rachel glanced at Bill, her heart pounding. He was holding the remote control. "Dang," he sighed. "Thar's nuttin' on 'cept fer some nature show." Rachel sighed. "Have ya ev'r watched this show befer, Ma'am? I've already seen this one....it's 'bout some town 'round here."  
  
"I see....what did the show-" As she looked back at the screen, she saw something move. "What was that?"  
  
"Oh, I know what this is," stated Bill. "It's prob'ly that 'Frankenstein' movie ev'ryone's talkin' 'bout....ya know, with the lil' gurl and the monster...."  
  
Rachel nodded, but had a horrible feeling about what was about to happen. She glanced back at Aiden; he too knew what was going to appear on the screen. "Yup, I wuz right. See, thar's the gurl."  
  
Rachel's heart began to pound even harder in her chest. She slowly turned around and looked at the screen.....and screamed. Slowly limping towards them was Samara. Her hair was covering her face so that Rachel couldn't make out her face, but she didn't need to. Rachel walked over to Aiden, and scooped him up. "Uhh, Bill. We need to go....."  
  
"Sure, huney. Have a nice day," said Bill, his eyes still fixed upon the screen. Rachel, carrying Aiden, began to run out of the shack. As she was about to pass the window, she heard a scream, not like before, but one filled with pain..she took a deep breath and dashed past the window, only catching a glance of the horribly disfigured face of Bill, and Samara, who was standing over him, murder in her eyes...  
  
Rachel ran as fast as she could to the car. She opened the door and set Aiden down in his seat. Her hands were shaking so badly that she was having trouble getting the keys out. She put the keys in and tried to start the car..she turned the keys and..nothing. She began to breathe heavily and began to sweat. She tried turning them again...still nothing. She looked in the rear-view mirror and saw Samara walking slowly towards her. She screamed, and then turned the keys with all of her might. Finally, the car started. She pressed her foot on the accelerator as far as it would go, and drove off. She took a U-turn and headed towards the exit, to go somewhere..anywhere.  
  
She was heading towards the exit when Samara appeared right in front of her car. She yelled out, and tried to swerve, on reflex, but, she ran right into Samara...or, over her. Right when her car was about to make contact with Samara, Samara layed down on the road. As soon as she went through the exit, Rachel looked into the rear-view mirror and saw Samara lying on the road, and she appeared to be dead; a man ran into the street and tried to help her.  
  
Rachel continued to glance out of the windows and the mirrors, just to make sure that Samara wasn't anywhere around. She looked at Aiden; he had fallen asleep already. She gave him a small smile. She slowly reached her hand over to turn on the radio. She pushed the 'on' button and took a deep breath. "Here's the song that was on the top of the charts for one week: Jimmy Eat World's 'The Middle.'" Rachel sighed in relief, then turned down the radio, and continued to drive..somewhere...  
  
-Before the exit-  
  
The man ran into the road, scooped up Samara, and then ran back to the sidewalk. He set her on the ground, prepared to give her CPR, but, he fell over, dead, with the same empty eyes and open mouth that Katie, Noah, and Bill had...and Samara stood up, and walked away..until she disappeared...  
  
To be continued...  
  
A/N-how was chapter 4? I think it was okay..but I need to know if YOU liked it, so, please, please, PLEASE review! No flames, just suggestions or comments! 


	5. The Forest by the Road

Disclaimer: I don't own The Ring or any of its characters and I never, ever will! Thank God for that!  
  
A/N-I'm sorry that I haven't updated in a L O N G time, but I had a serious case of writer's block. I have finally broken out of that curse though! So, read!  
  
Chapter 5-The Forest by the Road  
  
Rachel and Aiden drove in silence, their hearts pounding. 'Oh my God,' Rachel thought, pushing her hair behind her ear. 'Is this really happening to me?' She noticed rain drops appearing on the windshield. "It's raining?" she asked herself.  
  
Rachel glanced out the window; there were dark clouds appearing all around the sky. There were more, and the sky appeared to get swallowed by darkness. Rachel switched on the windshield wiper as it began to rain even harder.  
  
Rachel looked up at the sky once more; it was covered with so many dark clouds, that it looked like night. Suddenly, a bolt of lightning flashed across the sky, lighting up the clouds and the inside of the car. "Shit," she whispered, as she swerved. She pulled back into her lane and slowed down.  
  
"Aiden, are you okay?"  
  
"Yes Mom," he replied, his eyes wide. "I'm okay."  
  
Rachel nodded and turned her eyes back to the road. All of a sudden, a bolt of lightning struck, just feet away from the car. Rachel gasped, and swerved again....straight into a ditch. She hit her head on the steering wheel and immediately found darkness....  
  
Rachel slowly opened her eyes and looked over at the passenger's seat; it was empty. "Oh my God," she moaned, before opening her door and dashing over to the other side of the car. "Aiden?!" she cried, throwing open the passenger side door. "Aiden?!" she cried again, bursting into tears. "NO! Samara, NO!" She laid on the ground and sobbed.  
  
"Mom?"  
  
Rachel stopped sobbing and looked up. Aiden was standing over her. "Oh, Aiden!" she gasped, embracing him tightly. "I thought you were gone!"  
  
"Mom," he said again. "I think I should show you something." He took her hand and pulled her to her feet.  
  
As he led her away from the car, Rachel looked around; the sky had cleared up and she saw that she had crashed into a tree near a forest. Aiden was leading her into the forest. "Honey, where are we going?" she asked, looking around nervously.  
  
"You'll see," Aiden replied, no emotion in his voice.  
  
Rachel let him lead her deeper and deeper into the forest, until they reached a valley. "Wow," said Rachel, amazed. The valley was beautiful; it was a perfect shade of green, and there were flowers blossoming everywhere. Rachel continued to look around the valley. "Is this what you wanted to show me?" she asked.  
  
"No." He took her hand again and began leading her across the valley. "Mom, I want this to be a surprise, so, close your eyes."  
  
"Umm, okay," she replied, closing her eyes. She felt the grip on her hand tighten, and Aiden continued to lead her somewhere, until she felt him stop.  
  
"You can open your eyes now, Mom."  
  
Rachel slowly open her eyes....and screamed. Directly in front of her was a well. "A-Aiden, w-we have to-to go, N-NOW!" She tried to pull him away, but his grip was too strong.  
  
"No, Rachel. We can't leave." He looked at her; his eyes were filled with evil. "She wants us here."  
  
Rachel gasped. "GET OUT OF HIS HEAD, SAMARA!" she screamed, trying to take her hand back. Aiden held on tight. Rachel looked back at the well; a hand appeared. Rachel screamed again. "NO! AIDEN! WE HAVE TO GET AWAY!"  
  
"No!" Rachel saw another hand appear. She looked at the ground and saw a large rock. She quickly leaned down and grabbed it. Then, squeezing her eyes shut, she lifted the rock up, and brought it down on her son's head, knocking him unconscious. As she opened her eyes, she saw Aiden laying on the ground, his head bleeding, and hair beginning to appear from the well. She scooped up Aiden and began running. As glanced back at the well; Samara was almost completely out.  
  
Rachel didn't stop running until she reached the road. She saw a semi- truck heading towards her. She flagged the driver down. "Please, sir," she said, out of breath. "Could you take my son and I wherever you're going."  
  
"Sure, ma'am, hop on in," he said, glancing at Aiden.  
  
As they drove away, Rachel glanced out of the rear-view mirror and saw Samara standing in the road, getting smaller and smaller....  
  
The driver glanced over and saw Rachel trying to wipe off the blood on Aiden's forehead. "Here, ma'am, use this," he said, handing her a tissue.  
  
"Thank you," replied Rachel, pressing it to Aiden's forehead.  
  
"So, what happened?"  
  
"I-I..had some car trouble..I mean, we ran off the road. I was nearly hit by lightning!"  
  
"Lightning? Ma'am, I think you were mistaken. I listen to the weather station all day, and there was NOTHING about a storm around here."  
  
"Nothing? Are you sure?" asked Rachel, raising an eyebrow.  
  
"Yes, positive."  
  
Rachel nodded, and continued to press on Aiden's forehead. She leaned down near Aiden's ear. "I'm so sorry, honey. But I HAD to get you away from her. I'm so, so sorry.." she whispered, before drifting off to sleep once more...  
  
To be continued.....  
  
A/N-Did you like it? I know it was kinda short...but REVIEW!! 


	6. Along for the Ride

Disclaimer-I will never own "The Ring"...and let's keep it that way!  
  
A/N-Sorry I haven't updated in a while...the Document Manager wasn't cooperating with me! Ggrr...But it's okay now. :-)  
  
Chapter 6-Along for the Ride  
  
Rachel Keller awoke to the sound of screeching tires. She jerked her head up and saw that the truck driver had stopped to let a deer run across the road. He looked over and saw that she had awoken. "Hello ma'am. My name is Eric," he said, smiling. Rachel couldn't help noticing that he had a beautiful smile, and wasn't that bad looking of a man. "I didn't get a chance to ask you before," he continued. "Because you fell asleep and all, but, what's your name and where do you want to go?"  
  
"My name's Rachel Keller," Rachel groaned, shifting in her chair to better hold Aiden. "And I'll go where ever you're going....umm, where ARE you going?"  
  
"Well, I'm going a long way, Mrs. Keller-"  
  
"Ms. Keller, actually...and you can call me Rachel," she said, flirtingly.  
  
"Okay, Rachel it is. I'm going all the way to Little Rock, Arkansas. I'm delivering some new furniture to a family."  
  
"Speaking of family, do you have any kids or a spouse, Eric?"  
  
"Not yet, Rachel. Never had a good chance to start a family, unfortunately."  
  
Rachel nodded. 'So, he's single and pretty attractive,' she thought, brushing the hair off of Aiden's face. 'I wonder if I should-"  
  
"Rachel, could you turn up the radio, please?" asked Eric, interrupting her thoughts.  
  
"Oh, sure, Eric," she replied, smiling. She reached for the knob and turned up the volume. She quickly closed her eyes, expecting the worst, but was only met with a dead silence.  
  
"I think you need to change the stations. Sorry, this truck is a real piece of shit. Most of them are."  
  
Rachel stiffed a laugh and switched the station. She first heard silence, then a soft sound of rushing water. "That's pretty soothing," she said, to no one in particular. Suddenly, the rushing water disappeared, and was replaced with an eerie thumping, like a beating heart. Rachel's eyes widened, and she reached for the SEEK button, but was too late. The beating was replaced with a voice.  
  
"Rachel." Rachel and Eric exchanged confused glances. Rachel wasn't confused because the voice said her name, as Eric was; she was confused because the voice did not belong to Samara. The voice was an older girl. "Rachel," it said again.  
  
"Oh my God," Rachel gasped. It was Katie. Rachel leaned towards the radio. "Katie, is that you?" she whispered.  
  
"Rachel, what the hell's going on?" demanded Eric.  
  
Rachel silenced him with a look, and leaned back towards the radio. "Yes, Rachel. It's me. You have to be careful. Samara almost got Aiden. Believe me; you don't want to be here. I can hear all of the screams, feel all of the pain, and see what she does when she kills someone. You have to keep Aiden away from her."  
  
"But, Katie, I don't understand....why was Aiden acting that way at the valley?"  
  
"Samara was controlling his mind to get you to come with him, so that she could kill you too. She doesn't just want Aiden, Rachel. She wants you dead. You're the one who's keeping Aiden away from her, and she doesn't like that."  
  
Rachel squeezed her eyes shut, letting tears flow from them. "I don't like that, Rachel." Rachel's head snapped up. "Aiden is mine, and soon, you will be too," said Samara, who had replaced Katie's voice. In the distance, she heard Katie scream, then a thump, from something falling.  
  
"Katie's been bad," Samara continued. "She tried to help you, so I had to do something. Now, she's past being dead. She's nothing."  
  
"Rachel, what's going on?!" demanded Eric, grabbing her shoulder. "Tell me now!"  
  
"I can't!" screamed Rachel. "You won't believe me!"  
  
"Yes I will! Tell me what's happening! Who the hell is Samara?!"  
  
Rachel opened her mouth to answer, but was cut off by Samara's voice. "Goodbye, Rachel, I'll see you soon. Of course, no one else will." Silence.  
  
Rachel let out a sob, and collapsed back into her seat, embracing Aiden. "Okay Eric, I'll tell you. Samara is this girl who kills people a week after they watch this tape. Now, she wants my son to help her kill those people. And now she wants me dead."  
  
She looked at Eric; his eyes were fixed on the road. "Okay, you were right. I don't believe you, but I do think that there is something strange about that radio."  
  
Rachel sighed, and laid her head on the dashboard. "Rachel," whispered a voice. "It's me, Noah. I think I can find a way for him to believe you, because I can tell you're going to need help."  
  
Suddenly, there was a flash of light about 20 feet in front of the truck, and Eric let out a yell of surprise, and swerved. "What is going on here?" he gasped, as he parked the truck on the side of the road. He jumped out of the truck and began walking toward where the flash had been. Rachel laid Aiden on the seat and jumped out of the truck as well.  
  
She looked at the street and saw Eric kneeling over something black. She slowly walked over to him and kneeled down beside him. "What is it?" she asked.  
  
"What did you say this SAMARA does to people?" he asked, shakily.  
  
"Well, she kills them. I've never seen her do it, but they always end up deformed, their jaw open and slumped to one side, and an empty look in their eyes. Why?"  
  
"Rachel, I-I believe you," he sighed, standing back up.  
  
"What made you change your mind?"  
  
"Look," he said, rolling the black shape over. Rachel let out a scream, and flung herself at Eric, who embraced her protectively. The black shape was Katie, only Katie wasn't just deformed, she was soaked and flies were covering her entire body.  
  
"C'mon, let's go back to the truck and find somewhere your son will be safe," said Eric, picking up Rachel, who had gone into shock.  
  
He carried her back to the truck and set her down beside Aiden, who was still unconscious, but the bleeding had stopped.  
  
Eric started the truck, but did not begin to drive. He glanced over at Rachel, who was still gaping at the figure on the road. He scooted over next to her and wrapped his arm around her shoulders. "Look, we won't let you or your son end up like that. We'll find somewhere for you to go....and I'll stay with you the entire time."  
  
"W-what about your job?" stammered Rachel, who was beginning to calm down.  
  
"Screw my job....I think making sure someone doesn't get killed or taken for evil is a little more important than delivering some furniture."  
  
Rachel smiled and looked at him. "Thanks." She turned her head back to the road and looked out for a second, before she felt lips upon her cheek.  
  
As they left, she glanced over at Eric, who was blushing. "Sorry, Rachel. I hope that wasn't, umm, perverted or anything, since we just met and all."  
  
"No, it's alright," replied Rachel, blushing as deeply as Eric. "Maybe we should go."  
  
Eric nodded, and started the truck. As they drove in silence, Katie's body had disappeared, leaving only the flies on the road....  
  
To be continued......  
  
A/N-sorry about the "romance" in this chapter. I just think that it would help the further chapters (and keep Eric from leaving them). Hey, at least I'm not doing NC-17 hardcore stuff, right? Anyways, just review! Thanks all!!! 


	7. Everyone Will Suffer

Disclaimer-I don't own The Ring or Ringu. They're from the minds of some people out to freak us all out! Well, it worked on me! I do own one thing though: Eric, the kind and attractive truck driver. Maybe if I make this into a movie, I can get Josh Hartnett to be Eric! Okay, maybe not....  
  
A/N-I finally saw Ringu! It was so scary! Unfortunately, I don't speak Japanese, so I had to read the English subtitles, but it was still scary! Oh and thanks to Allyson, StardustSprite, Sammy-chan, Riot Gurl, and Shanes_Babi_Gurl for reviewing! Thanks guys!!  
  
Chapter 7-Everyone Will Suffer  
  
"Rachel?" asked Eric, sheepishly. "I was wondering how you got mixed up with Samara and how you got into that ditch....and the real reason your son is unconscious."  
  
Rachel took a deep breath, looking down at Aiden, who was lying in her lap. "Well, a little over a month ago, my niece died...." She told Eric the whole story about how she went up to the cabin and watched the video tape. How she showed her late boyfriend the tape and how her son watched it. As she described all of the visions she saw, how she saw Samara's father die, and how she found Noah after he died, her hands were shaking, and her heart was racing.  
  
"Then, Noah came back to tell me that Samara wants my son to help her....kill the people who watch the video. So, I tried everything to save him....I went on a boat, which ended up killing the owner of the boat rental shop. Then, I decided to stay in the car, but I was nearly hit by lightning, so I drove into a ditch and hit my head and was knocked out....when I woke up, Aiden took me to this valley, and took me to a well. I saw Samara trying to come out, but Aiden wouldn't let us leave, so I hit him on the head with a rock...." Rachel broke off, tears forming in her eyes. "And then you found us."  
  
Eric nodded. He looked terrified. "Rachel, it seems like you've been through a lot these past few months....and I want you to know that I plan on helping you no matter what."  
  
Rachel smiled sadly. "Thanks Eric." She felt Aiden stir and looked down at him. "Eric! Aiden's waking up!" Suddenly, a horrible thought entered Rachel's mind. "Eric, what if Aiden is still being controlled by Samara?"  
  
Eric's eyes widened. "I never thought of that. Do you think it's possible?"  
  
"Well, we're about to find out." Rachel looked nervously down at her son, who was beginning to awaken. She watched as his eyes slowly opened.  
  
Aiden looked at Rachel for a second, before sitting upright in her lap. "M- Mom?" he mumbled, rubbing his head. "What....happened?"  
  
"Aiden, are you....feeling better?"  
  
"What do you mean? What happened? Who is THAT?" he asked, gesturing towards Eric.  
  
"Oh thank God!" cried Rachel, embracing Aiden. "Samara was controlling your mind and she almost got you! And I....I had to knock you out....I'm so sorry, Aiden!" Rachel broke down and began to sob, running her hands through Aiden's hair.  
  
"Mom, it's okay. I don't want Samara to get either of us....but, once again, who is THAT?" he asked, pointing at Eric.  
  
"Aiden, this is Eric. He's going to help us keep Samara away from you," Rachel sniffed, smiling at Aiden.  
  
"Hi Aiden," greeted Eric, holding out his hand. "Your mother tells me that you talked to Samara....is that right?"  
  
Aiden nodded, eyeing Eric suspiciously. "Yeah....mom, what ELSE did you tell him?" asked Aiden seriously.  
  
"I told him the whole story, honey. He deserved to know the truth, since he's going to be helping us....and going to be with us for a while," replied Rachel, smiling shyly at Eric. Eric began to smile back at Rachel, before he let out a yawn. "Oh no," whispered Rachel. "I didn't think of this. Eric, what are you going to do for sleep?"  
  
Eric glanced around nervously, trying to think of an answer. "Well, I was going to stop at a hotel....do you think that it would be safe?"  
  
"Only if the hotel didn't have a television," replied Rachel, looking out of the window.  
  
"Okay, do you think it would be the same if we removed the television from the room?"  
  
Rachel looked at Aiden. "What do you think, honey? Would it be safe that way?"  
  
Aiden shook his head. "I don't know....it might be."  
  
Rachel nodded and looked back at Eric. "Well, I guess it would be safe...."  
  
Eric looked at her and smiled. Aiden began to yawn as well, and rested his head on Rachel's shoulder, drifting off to sleep. Eric and Rachel drove together in complete silence, looking for a hotel to stop at. Finally, they reached a small town, where they saw a vacant motel. Eric pulled over and looked for a place to park his truck. Rachel looked at the motel, silently praying that it would be safe. As soon as Eric had parked the truck, Rachel gently awoke Aiden. "Aiden, we found a motel. Wake up."  
  
Aiden nodded and climbed off of Rachel's lap. Eric jumped out of the truck, and Rachel and Aiden followed closely behind him. They walked into the motel, where an elderly woman greeted them. "Hello, would you like to stay overnight?" she asked, putting on a pair of glasses.  
  
"Yes, one room please," said Eric, looking back at Rachel. Rachel raised an eyebrow at him. "Well, if it's not safe, we want to get out as fast as we can," he whispered, turning back to the woman.  
  
"Okay, here's your key. You're in room twelve," said the woman, cheerfully, handing Eric the key.  
  
"Thank you, and could we pay you in advance? We need to leave really early in the morning." The woman nodded, and Eric paid her. Eric turned around and looked at Rachel; she was staring straight ahead, her eyes large with fear. "Rachel, are you okay?" he asked.  
  
"C-cabin twelve?" stammered Rachel.  
  
"No, room twelve," corrected Eric. "Rachel, what's wrong?" he asked, nudging her arm.  
  
"Cabin twelve is where my niece stayed that night....where I was the night I watched the video....Eric, I don't know if I feel comfortable staying here...." Rachel shook her head.  
  
"It's okay, miss," said the woman. "This motel has never had any problems."  
  
"Okay," said Rachel, smiling nervously at her. "Umm, I have a question....are there televisions in the rooms?"  
  
"Of course, miss."  
  
"My son has problems with television....do you think it would be alright if we removed it from our room?"  
  
The woman looked strangely at Rachel, but nodded. "I'll have it removed as soon as possible. Here, follow me." The woman beckoned to them, and walked out from behind her desk. Rachel, Eric, and Aiden followed her out of the lobby and over to room twelve. Eric unlocked the door and the woman walked in. About a minute later, she left the room, pushing the television over to the lobby.  
  
Rachel, Eric, and Aiden went into the room to look around. They all stopped and stared at the bed; there was only one king-size bed and no pull- out couch. Rachel and Eric looked at each other and blushed. "Well, I guess we'll have to share a bed...." said Rachel, glancing at the ceiling.  
  
Eric nodded and bit his lip. "I hope you know that it wasn't my idea to have only one bed," he mumbled.  
  
Rachel yawned. "It's okay, let's just go to sleep. It's already 11 o'clock PM."  
  
Eric and Aiden nodded, and the three of them climbed into the bed, Aiden in the middle. Aiden and Eric fell asleep almost immediately, but Rachel lay awake, too nervous to go to sleep. She closed her eyes, but heard something hissing. She slowly opened her eyes, and was met with a huge, bloodshot eye.  
  
Rachel screamed and shot upright in the bed. Eric and Aiden awoke to her scream, and Eric switched on the light. "What the hell?" he cursed, rubbing his eyes. "Rachel, what's wrong?"  
  
"Eric, we....we have to....go NOW!" she cried, leaping out of the bed. She put her shoes on and began to pull Aiden and Eric out of the bed. "Please! I saw Samara! She's here! PLEASE!!!"  
  
Eric sat up in the bed and began cursing under his breath. "Fine!" He got out of the bed and put his shoes on. "But I'm going to the bathroom first." He went into the bathroom. As soon as he was finished, he washed his hands and splashed water onto his face. He grabbed a towel and began to wipe his face off. He opened his eyes and looked into the mirror, and let out a blood-curdling scream.  
  
He was looking directly into the face of a green, long-haired girl, her eyes closed. He began to run out of the bathroom, when he discovered that he was holding Samara's hair in his hands. He screamed again, and ran out of the bathroom. "C'mon you two! We're leaving NOW!!!" Rachel and Aiden followed Eric out of the motel room.  
  
Rachel took out the key to the room and rushed over to the lobby. She opened the door and gasped. Lying on the ground was the woman and a janitor. Dead. Rachel snapped her eyes shut and threw the key to the ground. She turned around and ran out of the lobby. She saw Eric and Aiden in the truck about 10 feet in front of her, and she slowed down to a walk.  
  
Rachel looked at Eric and Aiden again, and saw that they weren't looking at her; they were looking behind her, terrified. She looked around and saw Samara limping towards her. Rachel gaped at the sight, before running at the truck and climbing in.  
  
Eric started the truck and began to drive away from the evil child that was following them. Rachel looked at Eric, who was beginning to hyperventilate. "Eric, what happened?"  
  
"I-I went to the bathroom....I looked into the mirror, and saw that girl. She looked so....terrifying. Rachel, I had dried my face with her....hair. And I think something's on my face. Can you look at it? There's a light on the ceiling."  
  
Rachel turned on the light and looked at Eric's face. She gasped. On his face was a green burn. Rachel raised her hand up and touched it. Eric flinched. "Eric, you're face is....burned."  
  
"Don't touch it....it burns," he whimpered, covering his face with his hand.  
  
Rachel looked at Aiden, who had fallen asleep in her lap. "Eric, if you don't want to help us any more, I'll understand. I don't want you to die just because of me."  
  
Eric shook his head. "No, I'm staying. I don't want you to die either." Eric watched as Rachel rested her head against the window, falling asleep almost immediately.  
  
Eric reached up and touched his burn. As soon as his fingers touched it, he heard a voice. "Eric," the voice whispered. Eric's eyes widened; the voice was from a little girl. "Eric, why are you helping Rachel and Aiden? Helping them is only going to make you die, too. But I don't care....I'll have another friend if you die. Everyone will die. Everyone will suffer...."  
  
To Be Continued......  
  
A/N-Wow! I had a hard time trying to find somewhere to leave off. Anyways, review!! No flames! Oh, and by the way, I had to watch The Ring again, so that I would get everything right (I have it on DVD....can you believe that I bought it before seeing the movie?). The things I do for you people. :-D 


	8. Torture

Disclaimer: I don't (or want to) own The Ring. I think that I can deal with the fact that The Ring is owned by DreamWorks and Gore Verbinski and not me. Please read the Author's Note below!  
  
A/N-I noticed that I made a big (and stupid) mistake: I made the title of my story 'She Destorys with Another' instead of 'She Destroys with Another.' Okay, so it's not THAT big, but I don't think 'destorys' is even a word....anyways, it's fixed! Also, I'm going to be going to North Carolina with my family/friends this Friday, and I won't be home for about a month. But, I will have a computer, so I'll try to write more....but if I don't, you'll know why.  
  
Chapter 8-Torture  
  
Eric's hands began to shake as he listened to Samara. "Everyone will suffer...." she whispered, before her voice disappeared. Eric massaged his scar, staring at the road ahead of him.  
  
Eric noticed a few water drops on his windshield; it was beginning to rain. Eric turned on the radio and listened for the weather broadcast. "It looks like it's going to be a beautiful day! Everyone, go to the beach, don't stay inside watching TV, this is going to be a perfect day!"  
  
Eric switched off the radio, shaking his head. The rain was beginning to fall ever harder. Eric reached for the windshield wiper button, and turned it on. The windshield wiper on the passenger side began to sway, but the one in front of him did not.  
  
The rain began to pour even harder, the drops smacking on the roof of the truck. Eric couldn't see anything in front of him. He leaned over so that he could see out of the passenger side. Rachel stirred and Eric sat upright again.  
  
Eric slowed the truck down, and reached his hand outside the truck, trying to get the windshield wiper to work again. He pushed on it with all of his strength, but it wouldn't budge. 'I wonder if there's anything stuck in the wiper,' he thought, reaching his whole arm out of the window, fidgeting with the wiper.  
  
Finally, he found what was jamming it; a clump of grass. He pulled on it, until it finally came out, and the wiper started up.  
  
Eric pulled his hand back into the truck, getting ready to throw the grass out of the window. He looked down at the clump of grass, and he froze. It wasn't a clump of grass at all! He was holding a clump of Samara's hair.  
  
Eric gasped, and tried to throw it out the window, but the hair clung to him. It began to cut into his skin, making him cry out in pain. Rachel awoke to Eric's cry, quickly flicking on the light. She gaped at the clump of hair in Eric's hand. Eric began to shake. "Rachel," he stammered. "Please....get it off....of me...."  
  
Rachel looked at his hand more closely, and saw a thin bloodline appearing around the hair. She gasped, and looked around the truck for something sharp. She looked in the pocket behind her seat and found a pair of scissors. "Perfect," she whispered. She tried to get the scissors underneath Samara's hair, but Eric's body took a violent jolt. "Try to stay still, Eric," she said, soothingly. "I have to get this off."  
  
The blood on Eric's hand was increasing. Rachel quickly slipped the scissors underneath the hair, and cut down. The hair sliced in half and fell to the floor.  
  
Rachel picked it up and threw it out of the truck. She looked back at Eric, who was still shaking, and staring down at his hand, which was still bleeding. Rachel ripped off a piece of her shirt and wrapped it around Eric's hand. "Thanks," Eric whispered.  
  
Rachel smiled at him. "Do you think you can still drive?" she asked, taking his hand in hers.  
  
Eric tensed up and took his hand back. "M-maybe," he mumbled, gently placing his hands on the wheel. As soon as his injured hand touched the wheel, he flinched, and took his hand back. "I don't think I can," he said, rubbing his hand.  
  
Rachel looked at him. "Maybe I could drive," she requested.  
  
Eric stifled a laugh. "I don't think you could. It's harder than it looks, you know."  
  
"I know, but if you could help me...."  
  
Eric looked into Rachel's eyes and saw that she was serious about it. He sighed and glanced at Aiden, who was still in a deep sleep. "Okay," he whispered, sliding over on the bench. Rachel smiled and climbed over him, grasping the wheel. Eric helped her start the truck, and get it moving.  
  
Rachel drove slowly at first, but began to speed up. Eric smiled at her; she was doing a lot better than he had thought. She sped up a little more, so that they were doing about 70 MPH. Suddenly, she slammed into something, and heard a moan. She looked at Eric, who looked back at her. "What do you think that was?" asked Rachel.  
  
"I don't know..should we go check?" Eric replied.  
  
"I don't know..maybe we should. Do you have an umbrella and a flashlight?" Eric nodded, and handed her a big, orange umbrella, and got out a flashlight. Rachel opened the door and climbed out of the truck, Eric following closely behind. They both huddled under the umbrella and slowly walked around to the front of the truck.  
  
Rachel saw a dark form lying on the ground and nudged Eric. He nodded, and switched on the flashlight. Rachel gasped at the sight. A horse was lying on the ground, dead, blood pooling around it. Rachel stared at the sight. Eric stared at it too, and began to walk over to the horse.  
  
"Eric, NO!" she whispered. "A dead horse..it was on the video!"  
  
Eric's eyes widened and he stepped back from the horse. He shined the flashlight over the horse's body, when Rachel saw something glowing on its neck. She handed the umbrella to Eric, and kneeled over the horse. She looked at the neck and reached her hand out to touch the glowing object.  
  
As soon as her hand touched it, the horse snapped its eyes open and bit Rachel on the ankle. She cried out in pain, and fell to the ground, smacking her head on the cold, wet pavement. Eric rushed over and scooped her up, and ran back over to the truck. He set her on the bench next to Aiden, who had awoken. He stared at his unconscious mother, his eyes wide. "Eric? Did the little girl.."  
  
"No, she's just unconscious," Eric replied, watching as the horse galloped off of the street. He looked Rachel over; her ankle was bleeding, as was her head. Eric looked at his hand, and began ripping pieces of his shirt off. He wrapped the pieces around Rachel's head and ankle.  
  
Eric laid her head in his lap, and her feet across Aiden's lap. He began to drive, ignoring the pain in his hand.  
  
Rachel looked calm on the outside, but was going insane on the inside..  
  
-Rachel's Dream-  
  
"LET ME OUT!!!" Rachel screamed, and began tearing at the padded walls. "PLEASE! MY SON IS GOING TO BE TAKEN AWAY FROM ME!!!!"  
  
Rachel sat against the wall, her head in her hands. "Rachel," a voice whispered. Rachel jerked her head up and saw Samara standing in front of her. "Why are you running away? It would be so much easier if you would just let me have Aiden."  
  
"NO!" Rachel screamed, standing up. "I HATE YOU, SAMARA! I HATE YOU!!!" She tried to attack Samara, but only went right through her. Rachel fell to the ground, staring up at Samara. "Why are you doing this?" she whispered.  
  
"Because Rachel. I want Aiden, and I will have him. Besides, this chasing game is fun. Didn't you like my horse?"  
  
Rachel shook her head, curling up into a ball, and squeezing her eyes shut. She heard the ear-pitching noise, and slowly opened her eyes.  
  
The last thing she saw was Samara raising up a large object, and bringing it down with all her might..  
  
To Be Continued..  
  
A/N-Did you see the reference to Ringu I made? When the man hit Sadako over the head with a large object before throwing her into the well? Okay, well, that's the reference I was making. Review, no flames..same as always! 


	9. You Can't Sleep

Disclaimer-I do not own The Ring or any of its characters. I have no other remark to put here.  
  
A/N-Hey everyone! I'm baaack! Did ya miss me? North Carolina was okay, but I'm happy to be home. School starts in a few weeks, so I'll have less time to write. I know, it's sad, but I intend to keep this story goin', until I run out of ideas. Okay, chapter nine!  
  
Chapter 9-You Can't Sleep  
  
"Uhh." Rachel groaned as she slowly opened her eyes. As her sight began to slowly clear, she looked into the eyes of her son.  
  
Giving Aiden a small smile, she pushed herself up into a sitting position, her head throbbing.  
  
She was so focused on the pain that she jumped slightly at the sound of a voice. "How are you feeling, Rach?" Eric asked gently, his hands, Rachel could see, were tightly gripping the steering wheel. "After the horse kicked you, it ran down a hill and collapsed in a stream. I would've checked on it, but I didn't want to leave you alone...."  
  
"Thanks," muttered Rachel, rubbing her forehead. "Have there been any more, you know, signs of Samara?"  
  
"Not yet."  
  
Rachel nodded, bringing her hand down into her lap.  
  
"Mom?" Aiden whispered, laying his head on Rachel's arm. "What are we going to do now?"  
  
Rachel opened her mouth to reply, then closed it. She looked into Aiden's worried eyes. "I-I don't know," she said, finally. "The hotel idea didn't work, and it left a lot of people dead."  
  
"Actually-" interrupted Eric. "I was listening to the radio earlier, and all of those people from the hotel had gone into fright. They were all checked into a psychiatric hospital immediately, and it was reported that all they would say to police was 'She wants him....she wants him.'" He bit his lip, glancing over at Rachel. "I think we both know who they were talking about."  
  
Rachel nodded slowly. Aiden stared out of the window, his face deathly white.  
  
They all stayed in that position until they heard a strange crackling sound. Rachel and Eric looked at each other, then looked at the truck speakers.  
  
They stared, horror-stricken, as the crackling slowly changed into a horrible, moaning sound. "Eric, keep your eyes on the road, damn it!" shouted Rachel.  
  
The moaning grew louder and louder. Rachel and Aiden pressed their hands to their ears. Eric gritted his teeth together, squeezing the steering wheel tighter.  
  
The moaning quickly changed into an ear-piercing scream. Eric bit his lip, trying his hardest to concentrate on the road. It felt as though his ear drums were about to explode.  
  
Eric bit his lip tighter, beginning to taste blood. Rachel looked at Eric, tore her hands from her ears, and covered Eric's ears with her own hands. Eric released his lip, sighing slightly.  
  
Rachel squeezed her eyes shut, attempting to drown out the blood-curdling scream. Tears began to form in her eyes, the pain was so horrible. Finally, the screaming stopped, and the truck was filled with silence.  
  
Rachel removed her hands from Eric's ears, and began to rub her head. "Oh, my God," she murmured. "Aiden, are you alright."  
  
Aiden nodded, bringing his hands down.  
  
"How about you, Eric?" she asked, turning towards the truck driver.  
  
"I think I'm okay. Shit, that was painful. What did she do that for?"  
  
Rachel continued to rub at her forehead. "I don't know. Probably to distract you, so that you'd run off of the road, and then we'd have no transportation....but that's just a guess." She added, off of Eric's raised eyebrow.  
  
Aiden laid his head on Rachel's lap, and closed his eyes. "Mom," he began.  
  
Rachel looked down at him. "Yes, honey?"  
  
"I saw your dream. When you were unconscious. I saw you in the room, I saw the little girl. She talked to me. She said that she's really mad at you. She wants you to be awake."  
  
"Wh-what?" stammered Rachel. "Why?"  
  
"I don't know. She just does." Aiden half-opened his eyes. "She said that she doesn't want you to sleep." Aiden closed his eyes once again, and quickly fell asleep.  
  
Rachel shook her head. "I don't understand. Why doesn't Samara want me to sleep?"  
  
"Maybe she wants you to see your son before she takes him away," replied Eric. "Just a guess," he added, raising an eyebrow.  
  
Rachel smiled at him, gently brushing her son's hair off of his face. "Good guess," she said, sarcastically. She turned her head to look out of the window. 'If you're out there, Samara,' she thought. 'I just want you to know, if you want my son, you'll have to catch me.'  
  
To Be Continued..  
  
A/N-I know, I know! It's kinda short, but gimme a break! I just came back from a vacation! I promise, I'll try to make my future chapters longer. Okay, you've read, now review!! As always, no flames, but suggestions/advice is ALWAYS welcome. 


	10. Is this really happening?

Disclaimer: Nope....I don't own The Ring, Ringu, or any of those movies/books. I am just borrowing the characters without permission so that I can write a story. So, PLEASE don't sue me! I also don't own Taco Bell.  
  
Chapter 10-"Is this really happening?"  
  
Rachel shook her head, snapping herself out of a doze. She looked down at her son, who had fallen asleep in her lap. 'What's going on in your head?' she thought, brushing Aiden's hair out of his face. 'What is Samara doing to you?'  
  
"Rachel, I'm going to need to stop for food," said Eric. "What would you like?"  
  
Rachel looked at him, an uneasy feeling growing in her stomach. Something was going to happen when they stopped, she could tell. "Umm, Eric? Are you sure that we should stop? I don't feel good about this. Something's telling me that Samara's going to be there...."  
  
"Rach, if I don't eat soon, I'll pass out, and then Samara will DEFINETLY get us. I'm sorry, but I have to stop."  
  
Rachel exhaled, nodding slowly. Eric smiled at her, and looked out of the window at the passing signs. "Should I stop at Taco Bell?" he asked, glancing over at Rachel. "Is that okay with you?"  
  
"Sure."  
  
Eric pulled over at the exit, driving towards the restaurant. He parked in the truck parking lot, and opened his door. "Rachel, I want you to stay here, okay? So, if Samara comes, you'll be able to get away."  
  
"Eric, I'd never leave you...."  
  
"You might have to....just promise me you'll leave if you see her," Eric demanded, staring Rachel directly in the eyes.  
  
Rachel was amazed by the seriousness in his voice and eyes. He did care about her and Aiden. Smiling, she agreed.  
  
Eric smiled back at her, before jumping out of his truck, and walking, very quickly, over to Taco Bell.  
  
Rachel watched as he entered the building, the door closing behind him. Beads of sweat began to form on her forehead. Rachel glanced nervously around, looking at all of the rear-view mirrors. Gently moving Aiden off of her lap, she turned around and glanced into the back of the truck.  
  
Suddenly, she heard someone breathing in her ear. Eyes flaring wide, she jerked her head around, her eyes connecting with her son's.  
  
Aiden was standing on the seat, next to Rachel, looking at her oddly. "Mom, what's wrong? Why did we stop?" he asked.  
  
Rachel let out a sigh of relief. "Oh, honey....Eric's just getting some food for us. We're going to leave as quickly as possible."  
  
Aiden stared at her, unmoving. "Okay," he replied, finally.  
  
Aiden sat down next to his mother, looking out of the window every few seconds.  
  
The silence was broken when Eric opened the door to the truck, carrying four bags of food. "Hey Rach. I didn't know what you liked, so I got you and Aiden some nachos," he said, handing them two bags. "And I got you each a soda," he added, holding out some cups.  
  
"Oh, thanks, Eric," sighed Rachel. "I'll be sure to pay you back as soon as this nightmare is over...."  
  
Eric held up his hands. "Not necessary. You two have been through a lot. This lunch is nothing."  
  
Eric started the truck and pulled out of the parking lot. Rachel felt a great weight lift off of her shoulders. 'I was SO sure that something bad was going to happen....maybe it's over...." She reached into her bag, pulled out a nacho, and put it into her mouth. She began to chew, before she heard an unnatural CRUNCH, followed by a horrible taste. Gagging, she spat the nacho into a napkin. "Oh, my God!" she choked out, wiping her tongue with the napkin. "What the hell was that?" She opened the napkin and gasped, dropping the napkin onto the floor.  
  
Inside the napkin was a centipede, twitching slightly. Rachel looked down at it, shuddering. "Shit," she whispered, coughing.  
  
"Was that in your food?" asked Eric, looking down at the floor. "That place wasn't very clean. Sorry about that."  
  
Rachel continued to stare at the now-dead centipede. A scene from the video flashed through her mind: A centipede crawling out from under a table....  
  
Grimacing, she shook off the thought. "That's alright, Eric. I don't think it was the restaurant's fault."  
  
"You mean....?" he asked, raising his eyebrows.  
  
Rachel nodded. "Aiden? Samara doesn't want me to eat, either, does she?"  
  
Aiden looked at her, his eyes filled with a mixture of fear and sadness. "No."  
  
Rachel groaned; she was so hungry that her stomach was beginning to hurt. "Great," she muttered, scrunching up the food bag and tossing it to the floor.  
  
"Hey! Don't toss that on the floor! If there are any more centipedes in there, I don't want them on the floor of my truck," said Eric, playfully.  
  
Rachel gave him a sad smile; she wasn't in the mood for humor. She was tired and hungry, and if she slept or ate, Samara would terrorize her. "I think she's offering a trade," she said, to no one in particular. "If I give up Aiden, I can eat and sleep again..but if I don't, I'll probably starve to death. Wonderful. Well, Samara," she said, her voice growing louder. "You can forget about it! I'll choose starving over you taking my son ANY DAY!" Rachel was practically shouting now. "CAN YOU HEAR ME?! I'D RATHER STARVE!"  
  
Rachel stopped shouting, her head beginning to throb. "Eric, I need to eat. If I don't eat, I'll pass out, and I can't let that happen."  
  
"Here, try this," Eric said, handing her a soda. "Maybe it'll help."  
  
"Maybe.." Rachel took a sip, wincing as the soda turned to well water as soon as it touched her tongue." She swallowed the water, coughing.  
  
"What's wrong?" Eric asked, looking concerned.  
  
"The soda..turned to..well water as soon as it..entered my mouth," Rachel said, in-between coughs.  
  
Eric gave her a look of sympathy. "Man," he whispered. "I don't know what we're going to do now.."  
  
"It's okay," said Rachel. "I can live off of well water for a few months..and I can take Samara's horrible dreams if it means my son is safe."  
  
Eric nodded, and then turned his attention to the road. Rachel closed her eyes, immediately falling asleep. It didn't take long before she began to twitch. Eric looked at her, knowing that she wanted him to let her sleep..  
  
-Rachel's Dream-  
  
"Help!" Rachel screamed, pounding on the padded walls. "Let me out! Samara, stop doing this!"  
  
"I can't, Rachel," came a voice. "Not until you give me what I want."  
  
"I'll never give you my son!"  
  
Samara began to laugh. "Rachel, you really don't get it. You're going to die. You can't eat, and sleeping will make you go insane. What are you going to do?"  
  
Rachel backed away from the walls, and sat in a chair in the middle of the room, crying silently. "Don't cry, Rachel. I didn't cry when I was here."  
  
"What?" Rachel snapped her head up, looking at a doctor, who was holding up pictures of Aiden, a well, and a centipede. She gaped at him.  
  
"Rachel," began the doctor, "let's talk about these pictures. How do you make them?"  
  
"W-what? I didn't make those! Samara-she's trying to kill me! Let me go!"  
  
"We can't let you go, Rachel. Not until we find out what's wrong with you."  
  
"No! There's nothing wrong with me!!! This is a DREAM! Eric, WAKE ME UP! ERIC! AIDEN!"  
  
-Reality-  
  
Aiden was staring at his asleep mother, who was beginning to twitch more violently. His eyes widening, he took a hold of her arm and began to shake it. "Mom! Mom, wake up!"  
  
"Aiden, don't-" began Eric. "Don't wake her up."  
  
"I have to! She wants me to!"  
  
"Who? Samara?"  
  
"No!" snapped Aiden. "Rachel!"  
  
Eric, looking bewildered, turned his eyes back to the road.  
  
Aiden continued to shake his mother.  
  
-Rachel's Dream-  
  
"Now, Rachel, you're going to have to start telling us the truth," said the doctor, his empty eyes staring into Rachel's.  
  
Rachel looked at the doctor, whose face was becoming less and less visible. 'Yes!' she thought. 'They're trying to wake me up!'  
  
The whole room began to disappear, being replaced with darkness..  
  
-Reality-  
  
Rachel snapped her eyes open, Aiden's hands still clutching her arm. "Aiden, honey..you could hear me..in your head?"  
  
Aiden nodded, and then released his mother's arm. "Mom, if you sleep, you'll go insane.."  
  
"I know, honey, I know," sighed Rachel, rubbing her forehead. 'What are we going to do?!' she thought. 'I can't sleep, or I'll go insane, I can't eat, or the food will turn into bugs, and I can't drink, or it'll turn into well water. Oh, my God..is this really happening?'  
  
To Be Continued..  
  
A/N-Yea! A pretty long chapter! Are you proud of me? Okay, you know the drill: Review, no flames, just comments/suggestions. Thanks, guys! 


	11. Terrible Memories

Disclaimer: I don't own The Ring. It belongs to Gore Verbinski, not me! The only one I do own is Eric, not Rachel, not Aiden, and definitely not Samara (she scares me, anyways). Okay, now that THAT'S cleared up, you can read the next chapter!  
  
Chapter 11-Terrible Memories  
  
Rachel's head began to throb from hunger. She picked up her soda cup and took a sip. Scrunching up her nose as the soda turned into well water, she swallowed the liquid.  
  
"Eric," she said, softly. "I don't think I can go on like this. I'm really, really tired."  
  
"I know, Rach, but you and I both know that going to sleep will make you go insane," Eric replied, sighing. "And I'm starting to get tired, too."  
  
"I have an idea; why don't I drive, so that I won't think about going to sleep, and you can go to sleep," Rachel exclaimed. Eric looked at her, raising his eyebrows. "I'm sorry, I'm just really tired."  
  
Eric nodded, and then pulled the truck over to the side of the road. As he and Rachel traded seats, Rachel couldn't help wondering where they were. "Hey, Eric? Do you know what state we're in?"  
  
"I think we're in South Dakota. I've just been driving through any states we've come across. Something tells me we'll never get to Arkansas....but don't worry, if I get fired, it'll be all for the better."  
  
Rachel smiled at him as he closed his eyes. She started the truck and pulled back on to the road. She drove in silence, her heart pounding. She was so nervous about crashing Eric's truck that she forgot about being tired.  
  
Rachel glanced out of the window at some signs: Yellowstone National Park, next exit. 'I've always wanted to go there,' Rachel thought. 'As soon as this is over, I'll take Aiden there.'  
  
Suddenly, a dark figure appeared in the road, directly in front of the truck. Gasping, Rachel turned into the exit, only catching a glimpse of Samara.  
  
Eric, who had been flung to the floor, scooped himself up, and looked angrily at Rachel. "What the-what was that for?!" he demanded, rubbing his shoulder.  
  
"Samara appeared in the road....I had to turn....I'm sorry," said Rachel, breathing heavily.  
  
Eric shook his head and continued to rub at his shoulder. "That's alright; I didn't need to go to sleep, anyways."  
  
Rachel turned her attention back to the road. They had entered Yellowstone. "Wow!" Rachel said, gaping at the scenery. "This is beautiful."  
  
"Yeah, umm, don't you think that we should turn around?" asked Eric, glancing nervously around.  
  
"Right, okay." Rachel drove into the parking lot, and attempted to turn the truck around. Suddenly, the truck's engine began to smoke. Rachel stared, wide-eyed, as the truck came to a full stop.  
  
"Get out," whispered Eric. Rachel obeyed, picking up Aiden, who had woken up when Rachel had swerved. They jumped out of the truck, followed closely by Eric. They began to walk towards the gift store.  
  
"Eric, what are we going to do?"  
  
"I'm going to see if anyone in here will loan us a car. Stay with me," he replied, fear showing clearly in his voice.  
  
Rachel followed Eric into the gift store, glancing behind her every few seconds.  
  
The silence in the store was unbearable; there was no one around. The silence was quickly broken by static, coming from a back room. Rachel's eyes went flaring wide, looking at Eric. He looked back at her, understanding. He slowly began to walk towards the back room, holding his breath. Gripping the handle, he flung the door open, revealing a TV, with the image of a well showing on the screen.  
  
Rachel gasped. "Eric, come on....we've got to go. NOW!" Rachel and Eric began to run out of the shop, wet footsteps following closely behind them.  
  
Rachel, still holding her son, ran towards the hot springs, running into the sulfur-scented steam. Coughing, she continued to run on the wood walkway. All of a sudden, her shoe caught a wet spot, and she went sprawling onto the walkway, Aiden crashing onto the wood beside her.  
  
Rachel jerked her head up, looking into the steam. Two dark figures were stumbling towards her. Her eyes widened as the figures became recognizable; it was Eric, being pulled by Samara.  
  
Samara's hair was covering her face, until a gust of wind blew her face into view. Rachel looked into her death-filled eyes, opening her mouth to scream, only to collapse on the ground, dead.  
  
Eric watched the whole scene in horror. He looked down at the small girl gripping his arm. She turned her head towards him, then, without warning, she shoved him into the hot springs.  
  
Eric yelled out in protest as he fell towards the burning water, closer, and closer....until he was submerged in the water. His body was on fire....he could feel the burning cutting into his skin....he yelled out in pain....  
  
"Eric?" asked Rachel, shaking him. "Eric, are you alright?"  
  
Eric snapped his eyes open, looking at a very-much alive Rachel. "Oh, my God....Rachel," he gasped, placing his hand on her shoulder. "I had a horrible dream....Samara killed you, and me. Shit...." he added, shaking his head. "Where are we?"  
  
"We're about to pass Yellowstone," replied Rachel.  
  
Eric's eyes widened. "Rachel, close your eyes...."  
  
"What?" Rachel stared at him, disbelieving.  
  
"Just do it!"  
  
Rachel squeezed her eyes shut, and Eric took a hold of the wheel. As they were about to pass the exit for Yellowstone, a figure appeared in the road. Eric continued to drive. They drove through Samara, without swerving at all.  
  
"Okay, Rach....you can open your eyes now."  
  
Rachel opened her eyes as Eric let go of the wheel. "Eric, why did I have to do that?"  
  
"I-I can't explain....it was just something I saw in a dream."  
  
Rachel nodded, understanding what he meant. "Is Samara taking over your dreams, too?" she asked, shakily.  
  
Eric opened his mouth, fully ready to say 'yes.' He closed it, thinking about it. "No," he said softly. "I think..when I sleep..I can see what Samara is going to do next."  
  
"What? How?"  
  
"I don't know..but I guess it doesn't matter. If I sleep, I can prevent Samara from getting us."  
  
Rachel stared at him, amazed. "Are you..psychic?" she asked, looking over at her son.  
  
"I-I don't know. My family said that I used to be. Maybe it came back, because I met you," he replied, looking at Rachel.  
  
Rachel blushed. "The last time I met someone associated with Samara, he ended up killing himself.."  
  
Eric stared at her. "Well, let's hope that doesn't happen to me."  
  
Rachel smiled at him, continuing to blush. "Eric, you'll stay with us, right?"  
  
"Of course! I would NEVER think of leaving you at a time like this!"  
  
"No, I mean..after this is over."  
  
Eric smiled, understanding. "Of course I will. I'll never leave you."  
  
Rachel blushed a deeper shade of pink, and turned away, watching the road. "Well, I know it's probably hard for you to see, but, could you go back to sleep and see what Samara is planning?"  
  
Eric took a deep breath. "Sure."  
  
Eric laid his head against the seat, closing his eyes. His heart was pounding, but he knew that his dreams were vital in keeping Aiden and Rachel safe. After about five minutes of worrying, Eric fell into a deep sleep..  
  
Rachel looked at the driver who had accepted them into his life. 'God,' she thought. 'I just hope nothing happens to you..you've been so great to us. And I hope your dreams don't drive you insane, either..'  
  
Rachel stared ahead at the road, her stomach churning.  
  
All of a sudden, she could feel her hand beginning to twitch. She looked down at her left hand, which was beginning to jolt more aggressively. She gripped the steering wheel tighter, hoping to stop the twitching. As she grasped the steering wheel, her whole arm began to jolt. She took her hand off of the steering wheel and laid her arm down beside her.  
  
Every few minutes, she could feel her arm jerk. After about five minutes, the twitching stopped, and Rachel began to rub her arm. She felt as though Samara was getting closer.  
  
Rachel glanced down at her arm and gasped; on her arm was a circular burn, resembling the ring from the video. Every few seconds, the ring began to flash a bright shade of crimson. Each time it glowed, a horrible shock was sent throughout her body. She closed her eyes, and a horrifying vision flashed through her mind; Aiden and Samara were climbing out of a well, their faces distorted with death. Aiden looked so evil, so angry; Rachel snapped her eyes open and shuddered. "Why is this happening to us?" she whispered, looking at her sleeping son. "All we wanted was to know how Katie died that one night. How did one tape cause so much horror in our lives?"  
  
Rachel looked back to the road, tears forming in her eyes. All she could think about was Noah, and how horrible it must have been to have died, and not to even understand why. 'Why are you doing this, Samara?' she thought, angrily. "Noah and I helped you....why are you doing this to me?!' Rachel bit her lip, forcing back the tears. 'I don't understand....'  
  
Rachel stopping crying, abruptly. "Wait a minute," she whispered in realization. "I think I do understand....we didn't help Samara. We only found the place where she lost her faith in humanity. The place where her mother, the one person she loved, left her to die. That's why she wants to kill everyone....because she believes that everyone hates her like her family did. And Aiden was the first person to ever speak to her after that one day....I do understand...."  
  
"Mom, don't you think that all of that was just a little obvious?" asked Aiden, who had finally awoken.  
  
Rachel looked at him, not completely comprehending what he was saying. "What?"  
  
"Mom, the little girl said that she wouldn't have killed me, even though I watched the tape. She said I was her first friend. I never thought she'd want to take me away, but even I knew that I was the first person who ever spoke to her ever since she was first forced to live in the dark place."  
  
"I'm sorry, honey. It's just....I've been trying SO hard to forget about Samara and the tape, and now it seems to be taking over our lives. All I wanted was to forget."  
  
"Mom, forgetting about it won't make it go away," said Aiden, seriously. "I've told you, she-"  
  
"-never sleeps," they said together.  
  
"I understand that, Aiden. The only thing I DON'T understand is why she didn't try to take you from me a while ago."  
  
"I don't know that either....but it doesn't matter. She hasn't gotten me yet."  
  
"And she never will. I promise," Rachel said, staring into her son's eyes. "I will never let you be like her; terrorizing people's lives the way she did ours....and who's to say she won't get 'bored' again?"  
  
Aiden looked at her. "I never thought of that....I don't want to kill people who didn't even know that girl. And I don't want to know what will happen if she gets bored of me...."  
  
Rachel looked at Aiden once more, amazed by his intelligence. "Aiden," she began, taking in a deep breath. "That isn't something you'll have to worry about."  
  
"Okay, Mom," Aiden replied, smiling for the first time in days. Seeing him smile, Rachel couldn't help but smile as well.  
  
The two drove in complete silence, the sun was beginning to rise. "Wow," whispered Rachel. "It's morning already? The days seem to go by so fast now...." She looked over at Eric, who was still in a deep sleep. "I hope you wake up soon," she murmured. "I could really use some help...."  
  
Aiden carefully moved over Eric and sat down next to his mother. "Mom, is Eric okay?" he asked, nervously.  
  
"I don't know, sweetie....why?"  
  
"He's having a bad dream. He's really scared."  
  
"You can....see his dream?" asked Rachel, shocked.  
  
"Not SEE it....I can feel his emotions. He's-he's psychic isn't he, Mom?"  
  
"I'm not sure. He said that he might be, but I can't tell," replied Rachel, glancing over at Eric.  
  
"I think he is. His dreams aren't coming from his mind....they're coming from, uhh, somewhere else. I think they're coming from the future. Which would mean that, yes, he is psychic."  
  
Rachel stared at Eric in amazement. 'It was so lucky that we found you,' she thought. 'Almost....too lucky.' A horrible thought flashed through her mind: 'Maybe Eric is being controlled by Samara. Maybe he's taking us to her.' She shook off that thought, not willing to believe it. 'No, he's letting me drive, and I'm sure Aiden would have noticed-"  
  
Her thoughts were cut off by Eric jerking into an upright position, breathing heavily. Rachel could hear him saying faintly, "Oh, my God, oh, my God...."  
  
"Eric, what's wrong?" she asked, reaching over to touch his shoulder.  
  
Eric looked at her, as if she were a complete stranger. "Who-who are you?" he stammered, moving towards the opposite side of the truck. "Wh-where am I?"  
  
"Eric, are you okay?" Rachel asked, getting worried.  
  
"Who-who's Eric? What are you talking about?"  
  
Rachel stared at him, lost for words. "Aiden, what's wrong with him?"  
  
"I-I saw the last part of his dream," said Aiden, shakily. "I think, somehow, the little girl made him lose his memory so that he can't help us anymore."  
  
"Oh, damn it," cursed Rachel, pounding on the steering wheel.  
  
"Mom, you have to talk to him and make him tell us about his dream. It was really bad, he has to tell us."  
  
Rachel nodded, and looked over at the shaking man leaning on the passenger- side door, shaking with fear. "Eric, listen to me...." Eric snapped his eyes shut, attempting to block out her voice. "Listen to me, did you have a dream?" she asked, as gently as possible.  
  
Eric slowly opened his eyes to look at her. "I-I..."  
  
"Can you please tell me?"  
  
"I can't."  
  
Taken aback, Rachel leaned backwards on her chair. "Why not?"  
  
"She'll hurt me....she talked to me. She showed me really bad things."  
  
Rachel swallowed, imagining all of the horrible things Samara must have shown him. "Please tell me. If you don't, that girl will hurt you, me, and my son. Please tell me."  
  
Eric bit his lip, thinking about it. "O-okay. She said that she wanted a boy. Him, I think," he said, pointing at Aiden. "She wants him to help her kill people."  
  
'I know that,' thought Rachel, angrily, but tried to pay attention.  
  
"She said that she'll do anything to get him, and that she wants Rachel to die in a really horrible way...." He broke up, drawing in a shaky breath. "I said that I didn't know a Rachel, but she said I was lying. I can't remember if I knew what she was talking about, but she said 'If you won't tell me, I'll take something away so that you won't be able to help her.' Then she did something, and a horrible pain shot up my head, and then I woke up." He shook his head, remembering everything she had shown him.  
  
"Wait," said Rachel, waving her hand. "If she took away your memory, how do you remember everything she said and showed you?"  
  
"Because you can never take away a memory of something so terrible...."  
  
To Be Continued.....  
  
A/N-Wow! I just couldn't stop! This is definitely the longest chapter. I'm so proud. *tear* Anyways, please review. I really could use some ideas for future chapters. Review, no flames....blah, blah, blah. 


	12. Gas Spills and New Transportation

Disclaimer-I don't own The Ring or anything related to The Ring. Nope, never have, never will, never want too. The only thing I do own is my character Eric, the truck driver guy. I also don't own the Hess station or a Dodge Neon. Okay, there's my disclaimer, so now you can't sue me! Ha ha ha! Sorry about that...I had a lot of soda.  
  
Chapter 12-Gas Spills and New Transportation  
  
Rachel shook her head, absorbing what Eric had said. "Because you can never take away a memory of something so terrible...." The words rang through her mind. 'What did Samara show him?' she thought, sadly. 'To only remember Samara....that would be horrible. Poor Eric....'  
  
"Eric," she asked, her voice cracking. "What did Samara show you? It's really important that you tell me."  
  
Eric cleared his throat, and looked at the blonde woman sitting beside him. "I-I saw that girl, Samara, you said? I saw her walking towards two people, a tall one, and a shorter one. She limped towards them, when, all of a sudden, this cold gust of wind blows by, and her hair goes flying out of her face.  
  
"I didn't see her face, but those people did. They screamed a horrible, blood-curdling scream and fell to the ground. I think they were dead...." He paused, shuddering. "Then she limped over to the smaller one and picked him up. Oh, my God, his face....it looked as though he had been dead over a year, his mouth was open, and his eyes were so empty." Eric began to breathe more rapidly. "So, she picked him up, and said, 'Now we can be together. We can kill all who hate us. Don't be afraid, fear is what kills our victims.' Then his eyes began to fill with something worse than death....his eyes were filled with-"  
  
"-evil," finished Rachel, not taking her eyes off of the road.  
  
"Exactly. His mouth closed, but his skin was a pasty white. He stood up and looked down at the other person. He picked her-at least, I think it was a her; she had long hair- anyways, he picked her up and said, 'You kept me away from the little girl. You deserve to be dead. You don't understand us....you hate us, just like everyone else.' And then he dropped her on the ground, and her body sunk into the ground, and the shorter person disappeared. That's when she looked over at me and said, 'I must have the boy, Aiden. He will help me kill everyone. I don't care what I have to do to get him....I'll do anything.'  
  
"'You,' she said, pointing at me with one of her really white hands. 'You know Rachel....' I told her I didn't but she started yelling that I was a liar. I kept saying that I didn't know a Rachel, and then she walked closer to me, and said, ''If you won't tell me, I'll take something away so that you won't be able to help her.' That's when she pointed at me again, and my head began to hurt, and then I woke up."  
  
Rachel stared at Eric. 'Oh, my God,' she thought. 'That's all he remembers. That would be so horrible. Seeing the way Samara kills someone, seeing their faces, and hearing her say all of those things....damn, that's inhumane....'  
  
Her thoughts were cut off when she heard Eric breathing even more heavily. "I'm sorry," he said, trying to even out his breathing. "Who are you, again?"  
  
"I'm Rachel Keller," she replied, sadly. "And this is my son, Aiden."  
  
Eric sat perfectly still, staring at her. "Wh-what?' he stammered, embracing himself. "Y-YOU'RE Rachel? The one that girl is looking for?"  
  
Rachel nodded, causing Eric to begin to shake his head. "No," he whispered to himself. "That means I was with her earlier....I did know her. Oh, my God, I'm with the people that little girl wants....I got to get out of here...." He attempted to crawl over Aiden, clawing at the passenger-side door.  
  
Rachel looked over and saw Eric trying to escape. "Shit," she mumbled, carefully reaching over and grabbing Eric by his shirt. "Eric!" she snapped. "What the hell do you think you're doing?!"  
  
"I have to get away from you. The little girl will get me. I don't wanna die!" he yelled. Rachel pulled him back into his seat, away from the door. Eric began to thrash around insanely. "No! No! You can't keep me here! I don't wanna see that girl again! Not again!"  
  
Eric attempted to get out of his seat once again. Rachel pushed him back down with all of her strength. "Listen!" she said, harshly. "If you want to leave, that's fine! But remember, now that you know Samara exists, you'll either go insane, which is the road you're going down now, or Samara will kill you, anyway. But, if you stay with us, at least you'll have transportation. It's your decision."  
  
Rachel released Eric, who immediately collapsed in his seat. "I-I," he began, looking at the floor. "I'll stay with you....if you promise I'll be safe."  
  
Rachel looked at him and nodded. "Eric, I promise, you'll be safe as long as my son is safe....and since I have NO intention of letting him get hurt, I feel the same about you."  
  
Eric nodded at her, and laid his head down on the back of the seat. Aiden patted him on the shoulder. "Don't worry," he assured. "My mom won't let anything happen to us."  
  
Eric nodded again, and closed his eyes, attempting to breathe normally. Rachel looked over at her son, who smiled a sad smile at her. She tried to smile back, but was unable too. She turned her head back to the road and the three of them drove in silence, not bothering to start a conversation.  
  
'This is terrible,' Rachel thought. 'Eric is going insane....and he was our only chance to keep away from Samara. I can't ask him to go to sleep; that would be asking him to see Samara again, and I don't think he can take that, and I feel like Samara is getting closer to getting us. Maybe that's what she wants me to think....maybe she wants me and Eric to go insane, then Aiden would be hers.' Rachel winced as the horrible thought of Aiden climbing out of a well with Samara crossed her mind. 'Aiden killing someone....I can't even imagine that. He's such a smart, sweet boy. He would never kill someone-'  
  
Rachel's thoughts were cut off by a snore. She jerked her head over to look at Aiden; he was looking at Eric. Moving her eyes towards Eric's face, she saw that he was asleep. Rachel felt both relieved and frightened. 'Well, now Eric can tell us what Samara's planning....unless he's too scared to tell us.' She reached over to shake Eric awake, but his eyes went flaring wide, and a strangled scream came from his open mouth. Rachel jumped back staring at Eric.  
  
Rachel, remembering that she was driving, looked back at the road. "Eric," she said, continuing to watch the road. "What happened?"  
  
Eric didn't respond. Rachel's stomach began to churn with worry, so she looked over at the man beside her. His eyes were wide, and his mouth was open. Rachel reached over to touch his arm, but when she came within a few inches of him, he jerked away, his voice shaking. "K-keep aw-away from m- me. Y-you're going to kill me...." he stammered, looking to his right.  
  
"What? I'd never-" began Rachel.  
  
"Not you," interrupted Eric. "Him." He pointed at Aiden.  
  
"What?" Rachel said again. "Aiden won't....kill you, Eric."  
  
"Yes he is. That girl is going to make him."  
  
Rachel inhaled deeply. "Eric, I know it might be hard for you, but you need to tell me your dream. Can you do that for me?"  
  
Eric looked out of the front window, swallowing. "Okay. We were at a-a gas station of some sort. You were putting gas in the truck. I was sitting with Aiden when we heard you scream. I went out of the truck to go see what had happened. You were gone....I looked all around the truck. When I went to the passenger side to tell Aiden that you were gone, I saw Samara standing with Aiden. You were on the ground about ten feet away. Samara told Aiden to get rid of me. Aiden was staring at the ground, his eyes closed. His head turned up and he opened his eyes....I tried not to look into them, but he made me. Then I....died."  
  
"Okay, so all we have to do is NOT stop at a gas station. Easy enough; we have plenty of gas left," said Rachel, looking at the gas meter. To her horror, it began to turn towards 'Empty.' She heard a liquid falling onto the ground outside of the truck, so she looked in the rear-view mirror. She saw gas spilling out of the truck onto the road. "Oh, no...."  
  
Suddenly, an idea flashed through Rachel's mind. "Eric, you said that we had to be at a gas station, right?"  
  
"Yeah, so?"  
  
"Well, there should be extra gas in here, right?"  
  
"I don't know...."  
  
"Well, that'll be our only hope...." Rachel took a deep breath, and pushed onto the accelorator. The truck began to speed up, and the gas spilled out faster. Rachel watched as the gas meter drew even closer to being empty.  
  
"Mom, the next gas station is in two miles," said Aiden, reading a sign on the side of the road.  
  
"Great, the truck's already slowing down." After three minutes, the truck was only going three miles per hour. Then, the truck lerched, and came to an abrupt stop. Rachel leaped out of the truck and searched for a side door, where a gas tank might be. Finally, she found a compartment holding a spare tire, a tank of gas and a hose. Rachel grabbed the hose and the tank of gas.  
  
Hauling it to the side of the truck, Rachel began to fill the truck up with gas. Out of the corner of her eye, Rachel saw a figure walking towards her. Sucking in her breath, she began to recognize the figure as Samara. Thinking fast, she saved half of the gas and took it and the hose to the front of the truck. She jumped in and started the truck.  
  
Samara was coming closer. Eric looked out of the rear-view mirror and saw Samara limping towards them. The truck started and began to drive away from the killing child. As Rachel drove further away from Samara, she decided that they needed a new mode of transportation. "Aiden, Eric? At the next stop, we need to find a small car. It'll be easier to drive."  
  
Aiden nodded, Eric acted like he couldn't hear her. "Rachel?" he asked. "Was that Samara?"  
  
"Yeah, didn't you recognize her?"  
  
"Yes, it's just....she looked different in my dream."  
  
"How so?"  
  
"She was more alive....I don't know how to explain it." Eric stopped, shaking his head.  
  
Rachel sighed. "I have to stop somewhere....not the gas station, I'm still a little nervous about that...."  
  
Eric didn't respond, but Aiden looked over at his mother. "Mom, do you think that a smaller car will actually help?" he asked.  
  
"Well, it won't keep Samara away, but it'll be easier to drive, and it'll be faster....I just have NO idea of where to get a car."  
  
She continued to drive, looking out of the window at the passing signs. As she passed the first gas station, she began to feel a little more relaxed. She saw a Hess station pull-off. She pulled into the parking lot and hurried inside the shop. "Hello?" she yelled to all of the people inside. "Is anyone interested in selling their car? I'll give you any amount and a truck. Please? It's an emergancy!"  
  
Most of the people began to laugh, but a middle-aged man walked up to Rachel. "Excuse me, ma'am? I may be interested in selling my car to you, if it really is an emergency."  
  
"It is! My friend is-" Rachel broke off, thinking quickly. "-going insane. I need to get him to a doctor soon!" She stared at the man hopefully. 'Well, that wasn't exactly a lie,' she thought. 'Eric is kind of going insane....'  
  
The man looked at her, obviously thinking it over. "Well, how much are you offering?"  
  
Rachel pulled out her wallet and looked inside. "I have....three hundred dollars with me, and you can have the truck, but you need to drop some furnature off at Arkansas. The address is in the truck." This was true; Rachel had seen the address taped on the dashboard. "You can have the profits for the delivery and you can sell the truck, just PLEASE! I need your car!"  
  
"Well, I suppose it's okay...." the man said, pulling out his keys. "Here you go." Rachel accepted the keys and handed over the truck's keys to the man, along with the three hundred dollars. "It's the white Dodge Neon."  
  
"Okay, I can't tell you how much I appreciate this!"  
  
"You just did," the man replied, smiling at her.  
  
Rachel smiled back, and ran out of the store. She ran up to the truck and banged on the door. "Guys! We got a car, let's go!"  
  
Aiden and Eric jumped out of the truck and ran over to the white Neon and climbed in. "Mom," said Aiden, sitting in the back seat. "Good job."  
  
Rachel smiled at him and started the car. "Eric, are you okay?"  
  
Eric, who was seated in the passenger seat, looked over at Rachel and nodded.  
  
Rachel pulled out of the Hess station and drove onto the main road. Rachel sighed. 'This is so much better. Driving a truck is hard,' she thought, passing the South Dakota border into Minnesota. "We're in Minnesota now," she announced to no one in particular.  
  
When she got no response, Rachel went back into her own thoughts. 'I wonder what horrors tomorrow will bring.' The sun was beginning to set, the orange rays shining on her face. 'Wow, this is beautiful.' She glanced at the back seat to find Aiden asleep on the seat. 'I hope your dreams aren't as horrible as Eric's.' She turned back to the road as the sun disappeared from sight, leaving her surrounded by darkness....  
  
To Be Continued..  
  
A/N-I know, not exactly a 'cliffhanger' ending, but that's okay. Now review! Please? I like feedback! Thanks! The more reviews I get, the faster my mind will work (okay, so that's not true, but review anyway, will ya?). 


	13. I'm going to die

Disclaimer: I don't own The Ring. If I did own it in any way, I'd have a bigger wardrobe. Okay....I'll just write the next chapter, now.  
  
A/N: High school and volleyball have been taking up most of my time, so finding time to write, or even come up with ideas, has been REALLY hard. So, if this isn't as "disturbing" as the other chapters, I'm sorry.  
  
Chapter 13-"I'm going to die"  
  
Rachel switched on the headlights. She glanced at Eric, who was beginning to nod off. Aiden had been sleeping for about half an hour already and still looked peaceful. Rachel could only hope that he was as peaceful on the inside as the outside.  
  
Eric yawned loudly and rubbed his eyes. "Rachel?" he mumbled.  
  
"Hmm?"  
  
"Where are we?"  
  
Rachel sighed in annoyance. Only half an hour ago, she had announced that they had entered Minnesota. She hated repeating herself, especially when it was to the same person. "Minnesota, why?"  
  
"I don't know. I was just wondering...."  
  
Rachel nodded, rolling her eyes; her patience was growing thin. If Eric didn't want to tell her what was on his mind, she couldn't care less. She glanced in the rear-view mirror to look at herself. The dark circles under her eyes seemed to be growing larger and larger. Her blond hair was messy and dirty, and her eyes were bloodshot. 'God,' she thought, tearing her eyes away from her reflection. 'I don't think I can take another day of this; running away from every rest stop....we'll just die of starvation or lack of sleep, or...." Her thought trailed off as she yawned.  
  
Rachel tried to ignore her fatigue by thinking of where they would run to next. 'I just wish I knew somewhere she would never go....' Rachel's eyes snapped open as an idea hit her. "I got it!" she exclaimed. Aiden and Eric both awoke to her exclamation and began muttering questions under their breath.  
  
"Rach? What the....?" groaned Eric, rubbing at his eyes angrily.  
  
"I'm sorry, you two. It's just-I know where we can stay!" Eric and Aiden stared at her, silently asking her to continue. "The one place that she was never happy, and where all of her horrible thoughts were: the psychiatric hospital!"  
  
"Mom, that's all the way back near home," said Aiden, shaking his head. "But I do like that idea. The little girl always said that she hated that place and that she never wanted to go back to that room where the mean doctors would stare at her and ask her questions, and tell her that she was a liar."  
  
"That's great! But why didn't you tell me this before?"  
  
"I-I forgot until just now. Sorry."  
  
"It's okay, because now we know were we have to go!" Rachel immanently swerved the car around, and began driving in the opposite direction.  
  
Eric sat in his seat, staring at the dashboard. Rachel noticed this and gently nudged his shoulder. Eric immediately snapped upright, looking over at her, fear flashing quickly over his eyes, but quickly being replaced with ease. He smiled at her after noticing that she was worried about his reaction. "What is it, Rachel?"  
  
She shook her head, turning back to the road. "I have no idea, Eric. It seems like you are trying to act like there's nothing wrong, but I can tell that something IS wrong. What is it?" Eric turned his head to the right, and began looking at the passing-by trees. "Eric, no..look at me. Please," she added, exhausted.  
  
Eric obeyed, slowly turning his head over to Rachel's direction, but not looking at her face. "Rachel, really," he sighed. "I'm okay.."  
  
"No, you're not!" she snapped. "There's something wrong, and you know what it is. Tell me! This MUST be concerning Samara in some way, so I deserve to know." Rachel drummed her fingers on the steering wheel, waiting for Eric to respond. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Eric looking at his hands, which were locked together in his lap.  
  
"Well, I-I," he began, almost instantly snapping his mouth shut.  
  
"Damn it, Eric! Just tell me!"  
  
"Rachel, something bad is going to happen to you. She showed me....and- and," he stammered, tears burning in his eyes that he refused to let fall. "Rach..I'm going to die." He said the last line so softly; Rachel had to lean in close to hear him.  
  
It took a few seconds for Eric's words to sink in. As Rachel slowly moved back to sitting upright in the driver's seat, Eric's words repeated themselves over and over again. I'm going to die..I'm going to die..  
  
She shook her head violently. "Eric, NO! I'm not going to let you die! Samara's trying to scare you! Eric!" she shouted at Eric, who refused to look back at her. "Eric, listen to me! YOU'RE NOT GOING TO DIE!" Rachel stopped shouting and avoided looking in the rear-view mirror at her son's concerned eyes. She took a deep breath and then continued. "Eric," she whispered, "I promise..you aren't going to die because of Samara."  
  
Eric's form seemed to relax, but Rachel could still hear his words in her mind, echoing, never fading..  
  
I'm going to die..  
  
She rubbed her temple, trying to ignore his voice in her head, which sounded so afraid, but so sincere; he truly believed that he was going to die. 'No,' she thought. 'I won't let someone else die because of me.'  
  
"Mom?" Rachel looked at her right arm, where Aiden's head was resting.  
  
"Honey, put on your seatbelt."  
  
"You know, Eric's right..he is going to die," Aiden said softly, ignoring his mother's command.  
  
Rachel saw Eric tense up once more, and looked over angrily at her son. "Aiden, no he is not. I don't care what Samara told you she was going to do, Eric is NOT dying."  
  
"Mom, you can't change what's going to happen, and you should accept that, not deny something just because you think that YOU'LL be at fault."  
  
Aiden looked so wise that Rachel's anger was replaced with wonder, but she shook her head once again. "No," she whispered. "No..no one is going to die. We have lots of time."  
  
Aiden sighed, and then leaned back in his seat. Rachel looked down as she heard his seatbelt click. At that moment, she noticed that nothing out of the ordinary had happened for over two hours. 'Maybe she's giving up..no that would never happen. She's planning something,' she thought, grinding her teeth together.  
  
At that moment, Rachel wished that she had never noticed that nothing had happened: her whole body lost feeling, and she fell limp in her seat. "Eric..Aiden.." she murmured. Eric looked over at her and saw her head lolling on the top of the seat.  
  
"Rach?" he said, gently nudging her arm.  
  
As soon as his hand touched her arm, a burning sensation was sent throughout her body. She screamed out in pain, her head smashing against the window, before falling limp once again on the seat. "Help..me," she groaned, before her body began jerking violently.  
  
Eric grabbed onto the steering wheel and turned onto the side of the road. He pulled Rachel's leg off of the accelerator and the car slowly came to a stop. Rachel continued to twitch, and Eric began to panic. "Aiden, what do we do?"  
  
"I don't know," Aiden replied, his eyes wide.  
  
Eric pulled Rachel into his lap and tried to stop her twitching. After about five minutes, Rachel's twitching ceased, and her eyes fluttered open. "Eric," she whispered. "What are you doing? Samara's..coming."  
  
Eric looked down at her, confused. Rachel groaned inwardly. "Samara's coming..go!" she repeated, before passing out in Eric's lap. Eric continued to stare down at Rachel before Aiden's cry made him look up.  
  
"Eric, GO!" Aiden cried, pointing out of the back window. Eric looked out to see Samara only about five feet away from the car.  
  
In one quick movement, Eric pulled Rachel over to the passenger-side seat, and, somehow, quickly positioned himself in the driver's seat. He slammed on the accelerator, and the car quickly drove foreword, and away from Samara.  
  
As her form grew smaller and smaller, Eric looked at Rachel sadly. "I'm sorry that you don't understand," he whispered. "I'm going to die, and you're going to go somewhere very bright and colorless..I'm sorry," he said again, before looking back at the road.  
  
Aiden, however, continued to stare out of the back window. 'I don't understand,' he thought. 'Why didn't she stop the car? Or kill us? She had the chance..I don't understand...'  
  
Samara stood motionless. She had missed her chance to kill Rachel and Eric, and get Aiden, but she was smiling. 'This is fun,' she thought. 'I like making people hurt....especially the ones who take away my friends. This is a fun game.' Then her form disappeared, and she continued to smile...  
  
To Be Continued...  
  
A/N-I know, not as long as some of the other chapters, but still! I'm sorry that this took so long, but you know how it is..school taking up more of our lives than anything else we do..ggrr. Anyways, please review! Also, I have an original story up on fictionpress.net (I figure that this would be a good place to advertise, since this is my story). The site address is on my profile. Please read it..and review. Okay.I'm done talking now. 


	14. The Day That I Die

Disclaimer-I'm pretty sure I don't own The Ring. Not only am I too young to have a movie, I'm still living in the humid and tourist capital that is Florida. Oh, well...just four more years until college...how fun.  
  
A/N-I apologizes for the last chapter. It wasn't as well-written as a few of the other chapters and it was pretty short. I'll try to make this chapter up to the standards I wanted last time...and it'll be longer. And it also occurred to me that I never REALLY described what Eric looks like, so I'll add that in here, too. Review, please!  
  
Chapter 14-The Day that I Die  
  
Crunching metal...  
  
A boy screaming...  
  
Fire...  
  
An explosion...  
  
Death...  
  
Rachel's body jerked as a vision of the car crashing flashed through her mind. Eric glanced over at the unconscious woman lying in the seat beside him and sighed heavily. He was ridden with guilt. 'If I hadn't told her that I was going to die, Samara probably wouldn't have been mad at her for trying to change what's going to happen.' He sighed again, glancing at Aiden, who looked scared and exhausted. Aiden's eyes were locked on his mother's face, watching, unblinking.  
  
'What is that kid doing?' Eric asked himself. "Hey, Aiden," he said aloud. Aiden's eyes drifted from his mother's to Eric's face. "What are you thinking about?"  
  
"Rachel's having bad dreams," Aiden replied, his voice hollow and emotionless.  
  
"About what?" Eric wasn't surprised that Aiden could read minds; Aiden had always seemed a little...off, even though Eric could only remember the past day or so.  
  
"Fire...and people dying." Aiden returned his gaze back to his mother, who was lying as still as death. "She's going to die, you know."  
  
Eric nodded. "I know."  
  
Aiden remained silent for a few more minutes, before opening his mouth to speak once more. "Then why did you tell her that you only saw 'something bad' happening to her?"  
  
"I didn't want her to worry anymore than she needs to."  
  
Aiden nodded. "I know what's going to happen to you and her, but I don't know what's going to happen to me," he whispered. "Am I going to die, too? Or is the little girl going to get me? I...I'm scared. The little girl doesn't want me to know."  
  
"Aiden, I have a question. Is the psychiatric hospital that we're going to REALLY going to protect us from Samara?"  
  
Aiden stared at the back of Eric's head for a few seconds. He took a deep breath, and then responded. "No. I just said that so that my mom would have some hope. She just doesn't understand...we can't change what the future has in store for us. Especially when that girl is controlling the future."  
  
"'Controlling the future?'" Eric repeated, uneasily.  
  
"Yeah, she knows what she's going to do to us...but this is all a game to her. She likes playing with people's minds. That's the only reason she's chasing us like this; it's fun for her. But, I don't think that there's any way to escape what's going to happen."  
  
Eric groaned. "Great, then why are we going to this hospital?"  
  
"Because, maybe, there's a chance that Rachel is right and she won't want to go there, because of the past misery that it put her through, but I wouldn't get my hopes up."  
  
Eric nodded, trying to understand everything Aiden had just told him. 'I'm so confused. Rachel and I are going to die, but that girl had SO many chances to kill us, but this is a game to her. What happens when she gets bored? Will she ever give up? Oh, my God...why can't someone answer these questions?!' Eric shook his head angrily, not wanting to accept that at least two out of the three people were going to die sometime soon.  
  
Rachel began jerking around, thrashing her arms around her head. Eric looked over at her helplessly. He so wanted to stop the car and help his friend, but he knew that the moment he stopped, Samara would be there.  
  
Rachel began to mutter something. Eric leaned in closer to try and hear what she was saying. "No," she muttered. "NO!" she said again, a little louder. "No, I don't want to be here. I have to help Aiden." She paused, obviously listening to whomever was talking to her in her mind. "Aiden is NOT getting taken away from me. He's not..I won't let you win.."  
  
Silence..  
  
Eric looked back over at Rachel; her head was flopped over on her right shoulder, and her arms were crossed over her stomach. She seemed to have calmed down from her nightmare.  
  
Eric felt a little better, now that Rachel's dream had stopped for the time being, but wished that none of this had ever happened. 'But if none of this had ever happened,' he thought. 'I never would have met Rachel. I would have just been doing my job in my truck and wouldn't be about to die. I guess, in the end, no one will win..except for Samara.'  
  
He ran his hand through his blonde hair and sighed. Everything was so unfair. Eric had been told many times that life was never fair, but this seemed ridiculous. No one deserved this.  
  
Eric began to bite on the inside of his lip. "I need to stop thinking about this for awhile. Aiden, do you mind if I turn on the radio?" he asked.  
  
Aiden shook his head. "No, go ahead."  
  
Eric reached for the volume knob and turned. It clicked on, and country music filled the inside of the car. Eric groaned; he hated country music. He pushed the 'seek' button, trying to find a station that played rock or rap or even some oldies.  
  
Finally, he landed on a station that was playing rock music. He leaned back in his seat and listened as the radio DJ announced the next song. "Okay, and now we're going to listen to 'The Day that I Die' by Good Charlotte." Eric's eyes widened. Listening to a song about dying was the LAST thing he wanted. He reached for the 'seek' button and pushed it: the station did not change and the song began to play..  
  
"One day I woke up  
  
I woke up knowing today is the day I will die  
  
Cashdogg was barking went to the park and enjoyed that one last time  
  
I called my mother told her I loved her and begged her not to cry  
  
I wrote her a letter that said I'd miss her and signed that goodbye...  
  
You know the happiest day of my life  
  
I swear the happiest day of my life is the day that I die  
  
Can you feel the cold tonight?  
  
(The day that I died)  
  
It sets in but it's alright  
  
(The day that I died)  
  
Darkness falls I'm letting go  
  
(The day that I died)  
  
All alone but I feel fine  
  
We took a drive and we drove thru D.C.  
  
To see the places we lived,  
  
Long conversations we talked of old friends and all the things that we did  
  
Summer nights, drunken fights  
  
Mistakes we made...did we live it right?  
  
You know the happiest day of my life  
  
I swear the happiest day of my life is the day that I died  
  
Can you feel the cold tonight?  
  
(The day that I died)  
  
It sets in but it's alright  
  
(The day that I died)  
  
Darkness falls I'm letting go  
  
(The day that I died)  
  
All alone but I feel just fine  
  
You know the happiest day of my life  
  
I swear the happiest day of my life  
  
I know the happiest day of my life is the day that I died  
  
Can you feel the cold tonight?  
  
(The day that I died)  
  
It sets in but it's alright  
  
(The day that I died)  
  
Darkness falls I'm letting go  
  
(The day that I died)  
  
All alone but I feel fine  
  
Did I live it right?  
  
I hope I lived it right  
  
I hope I lived it right, I know I lived it right  
  
Did I live it right?  
  
I hope I lived it right.."  
  
As the song ended, Eric began to think if he had lived his life well. He became distraught when he was met with a blank. He could not remember anything he had done. He gritted his teeth and tried as hard as he could to remember what he had done before he had met Rachel.  
  
Nothing.  
  
He could not remember anything. Eric pounded his fist on the steering wheel in aggravation. Is this why Samara had taken away his memory, so that he would not remember anything when he died? Eric shook his head sadly. 'I don't know who my parents are, or if they're even alive. This isn't fair! This whole thing isn't fair! There isn't a dammed person alive who deserves this!' he thought, angrily. 'Why us? Why her? Why Aiden?' "Why?!"  
  
Eric nearly shouted that last word. He was filled with rage. "Why are you doing this?! Why are you doing this to any of us?! Aiden won't want to be your friend, especially if you kill his mother and me! He hates you, Samara! He hates you!"  
  
"Eric.."  
  
Eric, who had been screaming and squeezing his eyes shut in anger, opened his eyes in time to see a turn in the road. His eyes grew wide and he attempted to turn the car. The car slid on a patch of water and slid off of the road.  
  
It flipped over a numerous amount of times, the roof crunching and caving in closer and closer. Rachel's eyes flew open, only looking at a heavily- dented ceiling. She screamed aloud and attempted to push herself upright. The car came to a stop, laying upside down and gently swaying back and forth.  
  
Rachel suddenly became aware of her surroundings and was immediately filled with worry. "Aiden, Eric? Are you two okay?"  
  
"Yes." Rachel instantly recognized Aiden's voice.  
  
"Eric, where are you?!" she called. She turned her head to the driver's seat; it was empty. "Eric?!" she asked, her heart pounding. She kicked the passenger-side door open and walked out into the ditch where the car had fallen, Aiden following closely behind her.  
  
"Eric?!" she called again, and once again getting no response. She walked over to the front of the car. To her horror, there was a hole in the glass, as if something, or someone, had gone through it. She peered inside, seeing that Eric's seatbelt had ripped.  
  
She searched around in front of the car near a patch of bushes. As she walked around the bush, she saw Eric lying on the ground. Gasping, she threw herself beside his body and flipped him over. His face was not deformed, as she had suspected. His face looked still, as if he had died peacefully.  
  
Eric began to cough. Rachel sat beside him, putting his head in her lap. "Eric, can you hear me?"  
  
Eric's eyes fluttered open. Rachel gazed into his green eyes and was overcome with emotion. She began to cry silently. "I'm so sorry," she whispered.  
  
"Rachel," he murmured. "It's okay..I lived my life well. I remember.."  
  
Rachel smiled through her tears. "That's good." She could feel the life leaving him, and now understood that there was no way to change what Samara was going to have happen to him.  
  
"Oh, and Rachel? I'm happy..now I get to see my wife." His eyes closed, and his body went limp.  
  
Rachel continued to cry. "I'm so sorry.."  
  
After about five minutes, she stood up and walked over to Aiden, who was standing by the car. "Honey, Eric's dead."  
  
Aiden nodded. "I know."  
  
"You were right. I can't change what Samara's future holds for him, but I can change her future for you. Come on, we're going to go to that hospital."  
  
"Mom, the car is ruined..we'll never make it."  
  
"Yes, we will." Rachel rubbed at her now-red eyes. "Nothing will keep us from it, I promise you. Come on."  
  
As she and Aiden began to walk up the ditch, Rachel began to smell something in the air. It smelled like..smoke. She turned her head around and saw that the car had caught on fire. "Run!" she shouted, running as fast as she could up the ditch and onto the street. As soon as they set foot on the tar road, they heard a giant explosion. Metal and dirt went flying everywhere, covering them.  
  
As soon as the soot stopped falling, Rachel picked herself and her son up and took off down the street. She did not want to know what set off the car. As she ran, she looked back at the ditch. Smoke was spilling out into the sky. Rachel gasped as the smoke took the form of a ring, growing larger and larger..  
  
To Be Continued..  
  
A/N-that's better. A nice long chapter filled with crashes, death, and suspense..I felt bad about killing off Eric, but I had too..it was a much needed thing to do to make the story go in the direction I want it to. Okay, now review! I love reviews..I'm sorry, I also love to talk..write..you know what I mean..  
  
Disclaimer-Not only do I not own The Ring, I don't own the song 'The Day that I Die.' It's by Good Charlotte, one of the best bands in my opinion. Okay..that's it! 


	15. An Important Game To Win

Disclaimer-Alright let me put it this way: The day I own The Ring is the day that my Algebra class doesn't make me fall asleep. Okay, well that wasn't the best metaphor, but trust me....I DO NOT own The Ring...I love making these disclaimers long...  
  
A/N-Yea!! They finally put a Ring/Ringu section on ff.net. I really have no more to say....there's a first, huh? Oh, wait, yes I do! Sorry, I got your hopes up there. My English class is learning the "rules of writing," so, hopefully, my grammar will be better. I have no idea why I told you all that....I just wanted to let you know. Oh, and thanks to all of my reviewers (Druscilla Black, Icy Guardian, and cream_cheese_girl), and please make sure that you review this chapter as well.  
  
Chapter 15-An Important Game To Win  
  
Rachel grabbed Aiden by the hand and sprinted foreword, as the ring in the sky grew larger and larger. She glanced back at the sky, up at the coal- black circle. She gasped as a large bolt of lightning shot across one side of the ring to the other.  
  
As a crash of thunder filled her ears, Rachel snapped her head foreword and saw two headlights coming directly at her. She looked behind her, and saw a small form emerging from the smoke, which was spilling out of the car. Thinking fast, Rachel jumped in front of the car, which screeched to a halt about two inches from her.  
  
A woman stuck her head out of the window and looked angrily at Rachel. "What the hell is wrong with you?" she snapped. "I almost hit you!" Rachel could hear the women mutter "bitch" under her breath.  
  
Rachel snapped her head back around and could just barely make out Samara's features. Seeing her was enough of a push; Rachel ran around to the side of the Sudan, pulling Aiden around with her. With one quick movement, she threw the door open and pulled the woman, who, reaching a height of about five foot three, wasn't difficult to lift, out of the car.  
  
The woman thrashed around, trying to break out of Rachel's grip. Rachel hung on tightly to the woman's jacket, and threw her to the ground. The woman landed hard on her left side, releasing a groan as soon as she hit the pavement. Rachel sat in the driver's seat and pulled Aiden over to the passenger's seat. "Put on your seatbelt," she muttered, as her own seatbelt clicked.  
  
Since the car was still running, Rachel merely had to put all of her weight on the accelerator to take off. The last image she saw before the car began to move was the woman hauling herself off of the ground, blood slowly dripping out of a cut on her arm, where the pavement had scratched her. The woman took off after her car, which was heading in the same direction where Rachel's car had crashed.  
  
Rachel's eyebrows furrowed as she noticed that the woman apparently could not see the black ring in the sky, nor the crashed car. As Rachel passed Samara, she saw in the rear-view mirror that the woman could, without a doubt, see Samara. The woman slowed as she came within three feet of the little girl, confusion filling her features. The last thing Rachel saw before she turned the corner was a mixture of pain and fear washing over the woman's face.  
  
"Mom," murmured Aiden. "If we want to go to the psychiatric hospital, we have to go in the opposite direction."  
  
Rachel moaned inwardly as she turned the car around. "Thanks honey." Her stomach began to flip around in her stomach as she turned around the corner. "What the-?" The smoke ring was gone, along with the car. Rachel looked around. "Where are they?" she asked aloud.  
  
She glanced to her right, around the ditch, silently praying that she wouldn't see any trace of Samara. Everything was perfectly still; there was no wind blowing, the trees stood as though they were frozen. It was dead quiet. So quiet that there was a ringing in Rachel's ears. She continued to drive, but it appeared that everything outside of the car was moving in slow motion.  
  
The car went around the turn in the road where Eric had met his demise. As soon as they were safely around the corner, Rachel turned her head to the left....and was met with a horrible sight; the woman whose car she had stolen was, literally, impressed into the rock side on the side of the road. Her mouth was, of course, agape, and her eyes were filled with a black nothingness.  
  
The sight of a woman being compressed into the rocky mountain side made Rachel sick to her stomach. She looked away, nausea overpowering her senses. Aiden had also noticed the woman in the mountainside, but it did not cause him to be sick, or even upset that Samara had killed again; he felt amused, as if what Samara had done was a clever prank on her behalf, and seeing the fear in the woman's features gave him a sense of power, making him want to do the same to another person. Aiden shook his head, getting rid of the horrible emotions he was feeling.  
  
As Rachel's nausea passed, she noticed that Samara was nowhere in sight. 'Maybe she doesn't need Aiden anymore,' she thought, hopefully. 'Maybe she's going to leave us alone. Oh please, God, let that be the case.' Rachel continued to peer out of the car windows, still not seeing any trace of Samara what-so-ever. She sighed deeply, the butterflies in her stomach ceasing to flap.  
  
"Mom, she didn't give up." Rachel turned her head to look at her son. The dark circles under his eyes becoming more black and vivid as he looked back up at her. "She's just waiting to strike again. She knows where we're going and she thinks it's funny that you think that the psychiatric hospital is going to save you."  
  
"Oh does she?" said Rachel, sarcastically. "Well if she thinks it's so funny, she can just follow us to the place where her childhood finally collapsed all around her." Rachel said the last nine words of her sentence loudly, as though she believed Samara was listening to their conversation at that very minute. She rubbed her temple; it seemed that her headaches had been coming more often since Noah's message. Noah....Rachel missed him dearly. His sarcastic comments, his childlike nature, his smile....she had never noticed how much she had loved those wonderful, and yet very annoying, traits Noah had possessed.  
  
Tears welled in her eyes, slowly making their way down her face. "M-Mom?" said Aiden shakily.  
  
"I'm sorry, honey," replied Rachel, reaching up to wipe away the tears. She looked back down at her hand and gasped. There were not clear tears in her hand but streaks of blood. Rachel looked in her mirror. Her face was covered with red, sticky blood. The sight was so horrid that Rachel began to cry again. New lines of blood began rolling down her face and into the corner of her mouth. Rachel winced at the disgusting taste of the blood, spitting it onto the dashboard.  
  
As soon as the blood hit the dashboard, it began to fizz, as though it had turned into acid (*A/N: I got this idea after watching "A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child" this weekend. I'll tell you how it relates at the end of this chapter, okay?*). Rachel struggled for breath, trying to make the blood-tears stop flowing from her eyes. She squeezed her eyes shut and slowed the car down. Her eyelids opened and she looked into her reflection....her face was perfectly clean, no trace of blood whatsoever.  
  
Rachel stared at her reflection for a few seconds, trying to comprehend what had happened when she heard Aiden's frightened voice once again. "M- Mom, go now!" Without even looking around for Samara, Rachel slammed her foot on the pedal and the car sped forward, covering Samara in dust. As soon as the dust cleared, Samara had disappeared once again.  
  
Rachel stared ahead, at a loss for words. What was Samara doing? Aiden had said that this was all a game to her. Was making Rachel cry blood another fun part of the game, like winning her money in a game of poker? If that was so, Rachel was slowly running out of chips. What would happen when she was left with nothing and Samara had it all? Rachel shuddered at the thought of what Samara would do to her. Samara was especially mad at Rachel now; she had taken away the one item Samara had really wanted. What kind of horrible death would Rachel endure?  
  
Rachel pushed all traces of the "what if" thought out of her mind and concentrated on winning this game Samara had created for them..  
  
Her heart pounded. The memory of that woman in the mountainside would not get out of her mind. Samara had killed another person, another person to be on Rachel's conscience. That woman, Bill from the boat rental shop, Eric, Noah..and there were probably many others that Rachel did not even know about.  
  
Even with all of this guilt surging through her mind, there was still something she did not understand. "Aiden?" she asked, quietly. Aiden looked at her. "Why does Samara still want you to kill with her? I mean, she can already kill everyone on Earth without them even needing to see the video. Why is she doing this?"  
  
"They're not really dead. Not all of them, I mean. Eric is dead because he was so distracted in his thoughts about her that he accidentally ran off of the road. The little girl didn't really kill Eric. That woman isn't really dead. She's going to come back because she didn't kill herself or see the tape. She just saw Samara. Samara doesn't want to kill anyone who hasn't seen the tape. Like you told Noah, 'She just wanted to be heard.'"  
  
Rachel didn't bother to ask how Aiden knew that she had said that to Noah. She grinded her teeth together, trying her best to understand what her son had told her. "And Bill from the boat shop..is he still alive?"  
  
Aiden took in a deep breath, as if he were literally asking Samara if Bill was alive. "Yes," he said after a few seconds. "Apparently, he woke up in his rental shop with no idea of what happened."  
  
Rachel nodded, but she still felt that Noah and Eric's death were because of her. SHE had shown Noah the tape. SHE had not gotten to him in time to save him. SHE had dragged Eric into this whole nightmare. If SHE had not allowed Samara to get inside her mind, Eric wouldn't have had to drive and he wouldn't have died. Eric..where did he go?  
  
"Aiden, what happened to Eric's body?"  
  
A pause. "I think he is lying on the road a few miles away from where we crashed."  
  
Rachel nodded. "Hopefully he will have some family nearby.."  
  
Her sentence was cut off with a loud BANG!  
  
To Be Continued..  
  
A/N-Okay, like I said before, here's the part where I say where I got the idea for that one part. Last weekend, I saw "A Nightmare on Elm Street 5- The Dream Child," and there is one part where Freddy sprays champagne on the dashboard of a car and it turns into acid and fizzes or something like that. I know it's not a big thing, but I just wanted to say where I got the idea and I can't afford any lawsuits.  
  
Review now, please! 


	16. Last Chance

Disclaimer-The idea of *me* owning a movie, or any form of entertainment for that matter, is actually very funny. I think that I would give a bad name to all that is movies...considering my personality...  
  
A/N-I'm sorry...the only excuse I have for not updating sooner is the cursed thing known as *gasp*...writer's block!! I completely ran out of ideas for more chapters in this story, until now...I mean, I wrote other stories but...okay, you probably don't care, so I'll just stop...  
  
Oh, and *gracias* to all who reviewed...those who didn't...well...please review now!  
  
Chapter 16-Last Chance  
  
*BANG*  
  
Rachel jumped in her seat and cursed silently. "What the hell...?" She prayed that it wasn't a burst tire. As much as she didn't want to stop, she pressed on the brakes. She threw open the door and ran around the car, looking at all of the tires: they were all still filled.  
  
Rachel sighed with relief. "Thank God...but what made that sound?" She looked at the road behind her and saw on the ground something black smashed onto the ground. She glanced around nervously, making sure that Samara wasn't around, and dashed over to the unknown item on the road.  
  
She crouched down, examining the smashed black...box, it appeared to have once been. She noticed that the lid to the box was covering something. She lifted up the lid and saw three yellow-stained sheets of paper.  
  
A look of confusion and curiosity washed over Rachel's face. She carefully picked up the papers. The paper began to slowly crumble beneath her fingers, staining her fingers yellow. She wiped off the yellow on her shirt, and began to examine the paper on top. In a faded black ink, were the words "She never SLEEPs."  
  
The intensity in which the word "sleep" was written made Rachel wonder if whoever wrote the message was trying to point something specific out about the word. She shook her head in frustration, not understanding what was so important about that word.  
  
Rachel suddenly remembered the two other papers underneath. She looked at the second sheet; it was blank. She sighed, and looked at the third sheet of paper. At first, it appeared to be blank as well, but something red caught her eye. In the bottom-left corner of the paper were the letters "A.M."  
  
Rachel's eyes flared open. "'A.M.,'" she whispered. "A-Anna Morgan...it *can't* be..." She thought about all of the past occurrences that had happened the past few months, and decided that it was possible.  
  
"What are you trying to tell me?" she wondered aloud, before a woman's scream filled her ears. Dropping the papers, Rachel covered her ears with her hands and squeezed her eyes shut, trying to block out the ear-pitching scream that seemed to be coming from nowhere.  
  
The scream faded away, and Rachel removed her hands and opened her eyes. The box and papers were gone, leaving only a black mark on the ground. She stood up and began to turn around, before she saw something odd about the mark on the ground; it was in a perfect circle, like a giant hole, and if she didn't know better, it looked that if you were to try and walk upon it, you would fall into a dark nothingness.  
  
Rachel backed away slowly, towards the car. Before she turned around, she saw a ghastly white hand appear from the black circle, scratching at the road. Rachel screamed aloud and sprinted towards the car. As she reached the car door, the door slammed shut.  
  
Rachel grasped the door handle and pulled, but the door remained shut. She glanced back at the hole; Samara's head had appeared. "NO!" she shouted, pounding on the door. Letting out a small whimper, Rachel smashed her hand through the window and unlocked the door.  
  
Her hand was bleeding fiercely, but Rachel took no notice to it. She started the car and slammed on the accelerator. To her horror, the car remained in place, and Samara's wet footsteps were slapping upon the pavement, nearing closer to the car...  
  
Rachel continued to press on the pedal, not knowing what else to do. She looked to her left to look where Samara was, and was met with a head full of hair, looking at her through the glass-less window. Rachel screamed and her foot slipped, pressing the brakes, and the car sped forward.  
  
As soon as Samara was out of sight, Rachel calmed down a bit, but her heart was racing, and she felt slightly nauseous. "Aiden, honey...are you okay?" she asked, attempting to make her breathing normal once again. When there was no response, Rachel glanced in horror over at the passenger-side seat...  
  
Aiden was sitting perfectly upright in his chair and his eyes were open wide, but were staring at nothing. "Aiden!" Rachel shouted, shaking his shoulder with her right hand. As soon as her hand touched his shoulder, his shoulder began to burn fiercely. Smoke began to arise from his shirt, and Rachel yanked her hand away. The smoke that had entered the cuts on her hand caused a horrible stinging sensation in her fingers. She blew cool air on the cuts, trying to stop the stinging.  
  
"Aiden," she whispered, looking helplessly at her son. "Aiden, please wake up," she pleaded, tears pouring down her face. "Please," she added, quietly.  
  
Whether or not Aiden heard her, Rachel did not know, but as soon as she had begged him to wake out of his trance, Aiden jumped slightly and began looking around. "M-Mom?" he asked. "What happened?"  
  
"I don't know. You were in a...trance. Samara almost got us, but it's okay now."  
  
"Anna Morgan," said Aiden after a long pause.  
  
"What? How do you know about Anna?"  
  
"She was the little girl's mother...she tried to help us."  
  
"Yes, yes she did. Aiden, what did she mean by 'she never sleeps'?"  
  
Aiden shook his head. "I don't know, but the little girl was mad that her mom tried to help us, so she made the bad visions come back."  
  
"'Bad visions'?" repeated Rachel, a question in her voice. "What kind of-" Her sentence was cut off as a bright flash blinded her for a second, and then faded.  
  
As her vision came back, Rachel saw that she was in a small room, where all of the walls were painted the darkest black Rachel had ever seen. She suspected that they were walls, since the ceiling and floor were both cream- colored. Suddenly, a tall figure appeared behind her, breathing a raspy breath down her neck.  
  
Rachel shuddered, and spun around, to be met with a chalk-white face. Rachel recoiled backwards into one of the walls. The face opened its mouth, and a long white rope-like object was pulled from its insides. It made a horrible gagging sound, and Rachel snapped her eyes shut.  
  
As soon as she opened her eyes, she was on the edge of a tall cliff. She looked down at the bottom, where sharp rocks were sticking out from the water. She felt two small hands on her back as she fell off of the ledge. The razor-sharp rocks came closer and closer until...  
  
Darkness...and a young girl's voice poured into her ears. "It won't stop..." it whispered, so evilly that it sent a chill up Rachel's spine.  
  
"...Mom?"  
  
Rachel opened her eyes; she was back on the road. "Oh, my God," she whispered. "Anna didn't commit suicide," she realized. "Samara killed her for revenge. Oh, my God...that's how Anna was able to help me...her soul is still with Samara."  
  
"Not anymore."  
  
"What?"  
  
"Samara did the same thing to Anna as she did to Katie; she isn't dead anymore...she's nothing."  
  
"Great," groaned Rachel. "*Now* how are we going to find out what Anna wants us to do?"  
  
Aiden shook his head. "I don't know, Mom. What did the message say?"  
  
"'She never sleeps. There's a sentence I haven't heard enough," she added, sarcastically, rubbing at her forehead. Her right hand was still in pain, but it wasn't bleeding anymore. Rachel sighed; she was completely out of ideas of what to do.  
  
Rachel and Aiden drove the next hour or so in complete silence, trying to figure out what Anna had tried to tell them.  
  
They entered a small town, where only a small motel, a gas station, a doctor's office, and a few houses were present.  
  
'She never sleeps,' thought Rachel. 'Well, I know *that.* What is so important about telling me it again, and why is the word 'sleep' so special?' Rachel groaned. She was getting nowhere fast, and she was still miles away from where she needed to get to.  
  
'Sleep,' she thought again. 'I'd like to go to sleep. It's been days since I've slept last. Sleep...wait a minute! I think I've got it! Samara can't kill us if we're asleep! She can merely torment us, but she can't *kill* us! So, if Aiden and I go to sleep, and try to...connect somehow, we can get to the psychiatric hospital in the dream, because people say that it is possible to control dreams! But how are we going to go to sleep quickly with all of this pressure?'  
  
She looked out of the window and saw a gas station ahead. "Perfect!" she said. "Aiden, I'm going to run inside, give the owner a five dollar bill, and grab a pack of sleeping pills. Do you understand?"  
  
Aiden nodded. "Yeah, and I think your plan just *might* work."  
  
Rachel sighed in relief. "Good, but can you make us have the same dream, you know, together?"  
  
"Yes, I think so."  
  
Rachel pulled into the parking lot of the gas station and jumped out of the car. She dashed inside, slammed the five dollar bill on the counter in front of a worker. She ran into the medication isle and grabbed the first pack of sleeping pills she saw.  
  
As she was leaving the store, the worker tried to give her back her change. Rachel waved the worker off, and climbed into the car, handing the pills to Aiden. She buckled her seatbelt and started the car which, to her surprise, started without any problems.  
  
As they left the small town, Aiden ripped the package open. "It says that if we take one, it should work within half-an-hour," he said, reading the instructions.  
  
"Okay, so we'll each take one, and hope it keeps us asleep for a while." Aiden handed  
  
Rachel a pill. Rachel dry-swallowed the pill, and winced as it scratched the inside of her throat.  
  
Aiden did the same, but didn't seem to mind the feeling of dry-swallowing. "I hope this works, Mom."  
  
"So do I...it's the last chance that we have," Rachel replied, her stomach fluttering with nerves as she realized that it really *was* the last chance that they had. 'Oh well,' she thought. 'I'm pretty sure that this will work, and if it doesn't, maybe someone will find us on the road, asleep, and take us somewhere safe.'  
  
After about fifteen minutes of driving, Rachel could feel the pills already taking effect. She really wanted to sleep, but couldn't stop until she was on the borderline of light sleep and deep sleep.  
  
Everything around her was slowly getting darker and darker. Her head was fighting to stay upright, and her eyelids had never felt so heavy.  
  
Suddenly, she felt as though she was falling.falling.and hitting the ground. She jerked upright as she realized that she had been in a light sleep. "It's time to stop," she yawned.  
  
Aiden nodded. He was nearly asleep as well. Rachel pulled the car over to the side of the road, and climbed into the back bench. She put her back against the back of the bench and curled her legs to fit the limited amount of room. Aiden laid down in front of her on the bench.  
  
Rachel wrapped her arms around her son and embraced him as they both fell into a deep sleep.  
  
To Be Continued.  
  
A/N-Yea! Another chappie in the bag! Sorry, I'm listening to music, and I'm excited about (finally) writing another chapter after *so* long! Review and make me happy! But please be honest.not an 'evil' honest, an honest that.well, you know what I mean.I'm sorry for making this so damn complicated! :-) Review! 


	17. Flashbacks and Realization

 Disclaimer-I don't own a thing!  Not Rachel, Aiden, or anything else.  They belong to DreamWorks Pictures.  I did borrow a few things from the movie, but I put most of them in *stars.* So you know!  Anything else is mine….you'll know.

A/N-You know, I heard that they're coming out with a "The Ring 2."  I don't think it'll be as good as "The Ring" was, but I'll probably see it anyway....okay than, now the next chapter.

Chapter 17-Flashbacks and Realization

Rachel opened her eyes; she was standing on the road.  Their plan must not have worked.  

She glanced around.  "Where the hell is the car?" she wondered aloud.  To her amazement, her voice echoed all around her.  "It *did* work!" she cried, relieved.  "Aiden?" she called.  

"Are you there?!"  

Within a matter of seconds, her son appeared in front of her.  "Mom?  Why are we outside?" he asked, noticing the echoing as well.

"We're in a dream.  I can't believe it worked!"  Rachel glanced around.  "But, how do we get to the hospital?"

Aiden shook his head.  "I have no idea."

Rachel groaned inwardly.  "Great, maybe this was pointless...."  She looked to her left and saw a dark figure slowly approaching….she didn't think that it was Samara, because the figure was not limping whatsoever, and it looked like....a man.  

As the man approached, Rachel slowly backed away.  She had no idea if it was one of Samara's tricks, and didn't want to be caught.  "Rachel...." came the resounding echo of a familiar voice.

"Eric?" asked Rachel.

"Rachel, it's me."  The man grew nearer, and Rachel saw that it was indeed Eric, looking just as he had when she first met him.  "Rachel, I know how to help you."

"You know how to get us to the hospital?" she asked, amazed and overjoyed to see him.

"Yes," he replied.  "All you have to do is close your eyes, and picture the hospital *very* clearly."  He paused as both Rachel and Aiden followed his instructions.  "Okay, are you picturing it?"

Rachel and Aiden nodded.  "Okay," he said, closing his eyes as well.

Rachel stared into the darkness, waiting for Eric's next instructions.  "Okay....what next?" she asked.  When she got no response, she snapped her eyes open.  "Wow," she gasped; she and Aiden were standing in the mental institution, right inside in front of the entrance.  

The emptiness it held was eerie, and a cool breeze blew past every few seconds, making the hair on Rachel's arm rise.  "Eric, what do we do now?" she asked.  Silence was the only response she received.  "Eric?  Aiden, is Eric here?"

"I don't think so," he replied, looking around the room they were in.

"Eric!" she said loudly.  "We could really use your help right now!"

Suddenly, Eric appeared beside her, coming out of thin air.  Rachel was slightly taken aback, but shook off any other emotions or wants she had, except to find a way to destroy Samara. 

"Rachel," he said softly.  "I don't think that there's anything I can do....or that you can do, for that matter.  Samara is....merely a terrible memory, held inside a small girl's body, and collected into a videotape.  She cannot be destroyed."  He said the last sentence firmly and clearly, so that Rachel would understand.

"That's not true, Eric," protested Rachel.  "Anything can be beaten, if we find the right weapons, and our weapon is this hospital; the place where all of Samara's misaries and horrible happenings occurred.  What greater weapon is there?"

Eric raised his eyebrow; he understood what Rachel meant, but she was simply too stubborn to accept that memories cannot be destroyed unless they are forgotten.  Upon realizing this, Eric's eyes snapped open.  "Rachel!" he cried.  "I know how to destroy Samara!"  

"How?" asked Rachel, her eyes lighting up.

Eric opened his mouth to reply, but began coughing uncontrollably.  He keeled over, gripping his throat.  He tried to cough out how to destroy Samara, but all that came out was a strangled groan. 

Rachel could do nothing more that stare helplessly at the man on the floor, coughing and gagging in pain.  

Eric reached into his mouth, and began to slowly pull out a string.  When Rachel saw the string, a flashback entered her mind:  *Talking to her sister on the phone, trying to persuade her to take Aiden in for a day or so.  Suddenly, she begins to cough, slamming the phone on the counter.  She kneels down on the ground, and begins pulling a very thin rope from her throat.  Coughing, she finally reaches the end of the cord, revealing a small, white, plastic circle.  She reaches for the phone, and puts it to her ear; water comes out of the phone, dripping down….*

The flashback ended, and Rachel realized that she was short of breath, as if she had been coughing not too long ago, and her throat was *very* sore.  Had it all been a memory?  It seemed so real….Rachel felt as though she had just re-lived it….

Suddenly, Eric's coughing stopped, and his body went limp.  Rachel snapped out of her thoughts and looked down to see Eric lying on the floor, still clutching his throat.  The string was still hanging from his mouth.

Rachel's heart raced.  Samara had somehow gotten Eric to die once again….in her dream. 'How?' she thought.  'Can she kill me, too?'  Rachel didn't stop to think about it.  "Aiden, we have to figure out what Eric was trying to tell-Aiden?"  Rachel looked around; her son was no where to be seen.  "Aiden!" she yelled.

She wanted to look for him, but she had no idea of where to go.  "Aiden," she whispered.  "Where would you go?"  Rachel's eyes went wide.  "Of course," she hissed.  "Samara's old room….but where is that?"  

Rachel looked at the desk, where someone had obviously been working before the hospital shut down.  "Maybe if I imagine someone there, they can help me," she said to no one.  

She squeezed her eyes shut, imagining an elderly woman at the desk, a stack of papers all around her, patiently waiting for someone who needed her assistance.  

As soon as Rachel opened her eyes, a woman was sitting at the desk, and the desk looked brand new, not dusty and aged as it had before.  She walked up to the woman, who smiled at her.  "Yes?" she asked kindly.

"I need to know where to find Samara Morgan's room, please."

The woman nodded, looking through some files.  "Here it is: Samara Morgan, room 666."  

Rachel raised her eyebrows at Samara's room number, but shook it off.  "And, could you tell me why she's here?"

"Well, it says here that her mother and father requested that she come here because she doesn't sleep."

Rachel rolled her eyes.  "And….?"

"And….the mother feels that her daughter is, umm, giving her disturbing nightmares….unlike anything any human should ever hope to see in their lifetime."

"I see.  Was she more specific?" asked Rachel, wishing that the woman would hurry up; she wanted to find her son, but she also wanted as much information as possible.

 "Well, some examples were blood streaking down walls, horses dying, and a person falling off of a horse during a horse show, bruises appearing from no where, covering their entire body….which is something that actually happened during one of her horse shows when her daughter was young."

Rachel remembered the article about that occurrence at the horse show from her research about Anna Morgan a few months ago.  

"Well, is that all you need to know?" asked the woman, kindly.  

"Yes and thank you."  Rachel rushed down the halls, looking for room 666.  

After about three minutes of searching, Rachel finally found room 664, 665, and finally 666.  The door was closed.  

Rachel took a deep breath and threw the door open, which opened inwardly, and looked into the room; it was empty.  "Oh, no…." Rachel moaned.  "Now where do I look?" she asked herself, leaning against the door frame.  

Finally, an idea struck her: maybe he's in the room where Samara was questioned by those doctors.  Rachel stood upright, and reached for the door handle.

There was a bright flash, and the wall seemed to begin to "play" the moment when she and Noah first met.

_"Just two more years of college," a nineteen-year-old Rachel reminded herself as she began looking up information on the subject her professor had given her.  _

_She sighed.  'Who gives a damn about "sleeping disorders?"' she thought, angrily; she had been looking up information on that subject for over an hour, and had _still_ not come up with anything.  _

_"Need some help?"_

_"No, thank you," snapped Rachel.  "I'm fully capable of getting my own information."  She looked up at the person who had asked her, and was looking into the green eyes of a handsome man about her age.  She closed her mouth, only to open it again.  "I'm sorry, I'm just really flustered.  Yes, I'd love your help."_

_The man smiled and sat down beside her.  "I'm Noah Clay." _

_"Rachel Keller."_

_*Zoom Ahead a Month....*_

_"Rachel," began Noah._

_"Yes?" she replied, smiling at her boyfriend of one month._

_"I-I think I love you."_

_"I love you, too," she admitted._

_They smiled at each other as they entered Noah's room...._

_*The Next Day....*_

_"Something's wrong, but I don't know what," Rachel told her roommate, Patricia.  _

_"What is it?" Patricia asked.  "And where were you last night?"_

_"I was....with Noah," confessed Rachel._

_"Did you guys, you know, do anything?" she asked, raising her eyebrow._

_"Like....what?" asked Rachel, playfully._

_"You _did_, didn't you?!" _

_"Yeah," admitted Rachel.  "And _that's _what doesn't feel right, so I took a pregnancy test."_

_"You don't think that you're pregnant, do you?"  
Rachel didn't respond; she went into the bathroom to check on the tester.  To her horror, it was blue.  "Oh....my God," she breathed, fainting on the floor...._

_*A Few Hours Later....*_

_"Noah, I'm....pregnant."_

_"What?!__  After one time?  How?" asked Noah, gripping Rachel's hand tightly.  _

_Rachel shook her head.  "I don't know."_

_"Are you going to get rid of it?" Noah asked._

_Rachel paused, thinking about it.  "No," she said.  "I want to keep it."_

_"Rach, you know I won't be a good father.  Just look at what mine was!  I can't do it!  You have to get rid of it!"_

_Rachel stood up angrily.  "No!  And I can't believe you would expect me to do something like that!"_

_ "You know what, Rach?  You are such an obsessive bitch.  You really need to lighten up, you know?"_

_"Oh, so now I'm a bitch?  At least I'm not immature flake _(*what did she call him? Help!*) _who never finishes anything!"_

_"Whatever, Rach....have fun being a single parent."  Noah stood up and walked away, leaving Rachel to fall back onto her couch and sob...._

The flashback faded away, leaving a distressed Rachel to stand and wonder where that memory came from.  She pushed away any curiosity of that, and reached for the knob once again.

Suddenly, the door handle began to shake.  Rachel's eyes narrowed as she reached even closer to the handle….the door began to shake, and Rachel backed slowly away, her arm still outstretched.

Without any warning, the door swung shut, slamming Rachel's hand in.  Rachel cried out in pain, wondering how she could feel this kind of agony without being awake.  She kicked the door open, releasing her hand.  It still hurt from smashing the car window in, and now it felt as though her wrist was broken.  

Attempting to ignore the pain, Rachel rushed over to the examining room.  How she found it, she never understood; it was as though something led her there, something she couldn't see, but she wasn't bothered by it, given that she had found the room.  

There was a sheet of glass next to the door, which was obviously supposed to be some sort of window, or observation glass.  Rachel peered inside, and saw her son standing in the middle of the room, looking at a small chair.

She opened the door and rushed inside, held her son close.  "Why did you leave?" she demanded, holding the sides of his face.  

Aiden did not answer; his eyes were locked upon the chair.  Rachel released her son's face.  Aiden continued to stare at the chair.  

Suddenly, the chair slowly began to lean back on the back two legs.  Rachel gasped, looking back from her son to the chair.

The chair was only standing on one leg, and it began to spin around and around.  Rachel shook her head; she was having another deja-vu to the video.  *A chair spinning around….going upside down….spinning, spinning….*

Rachel snapped back into reality, gaping as the chair flipped upside down, hanging in mid air, and continuing to spin.  

Rachel jumped slightly as the chair fell to the ground, shattering into a small pile of wood, and then, dissolving into a pile of dust.

Aiden stood still for a moment, and then turned around to face his mother.  Rachel screamed aloud at what she saw: Aiden's eyes were a solid black, and his lips were coated in dried blood.  

Aiden stared at his shrieking mother for a second, but then collapsed on the floor.  His body began jerking and twitching violently.  A foamy substance came spewing from his mouth.  Rachel struggled for breath as she realized that Aiden was having a seizure.  

She rushed over to her squirming son, pulling him into her lap, trying to calm him down.  "It's okay, honey," she cooed.  "It's okay…."  Tears spilled down her cheeks as she lied to her son; everything was *not* okay.  They were losing, and losing terribly.  Rachel let the tears slide down her face into her son's hair.  

Rachel heard a faint buzz of static, which disappeared.  "Rachel."  

Rachel sniffed, looking up at….Noah.  "Noah?" she stammered, a mixture of distress and happiness in her voice.  

"Rachel, I know why your son is having these….seizures," he said, no emotion in his voice.  

"Why?" she asked, not in the mood to converse.

"Samara is standing over your bodies at this second, and she's trying to wake Aiden up….and she almost did, but he fought it, which is why he began having a seizure."

Rachel nodded, looking down at her son.  "Noah, do you know how-" Noah was gone.  

She sighed; everyone who was able to help her was gone.  She felt so alone and vulnerable.

Suddenly, Aiden's eyes snapped open.  His eyes were back to their normal color, and his features were the same once again.  He looked up at his mother.  "Rachel?" he moaned.  "What happened?"  

"Samara tried to wake you up, but don't worry....I won't let her get you."  

"Rachel, she's trying to get into the dream."  

"What?" Rachel stammered.  

"She's getting in.  Your plan didn't work....she's getting closer...."  Aiden fell to the floor, his eyes rolling back in his head.  

Rachel knelt beside her son, grasping his shoulders and shaking them violently.  "Aiden?!  She won't get you!" she cried.  She heard a pounding at the door and jerked her head around.  The door slowly creaked open, and a small figure stepped into the room, wet footsteps coming closer....and closer....

To Be Continued....

A/N-I think that the next chapter will be the last chapter or it may take two more chapters.  Either way, I'm almost done, and I know *exactly* how it is going to end.  *tear* I don't want this story to end; it's been *so* much fun to write!  Oh well....odds are that I'll write a sequel.  Review please!!!!!


	18. End of the Game

Disclaimer-See all other chapters.  
  
A/N-This is the last chapter. Or is it??? It is, for this story. I am *definetly* going to write a sequel. Okay, enjoy the *last* chapter. And review!  
  
Chapter 18-End of the Game  
  
Rachel watched in horror as the young girl began to limp into the room, her hair thrown messily over her face, but she stopped abruptly in the doorway.  
  
Glancing down at her son, who was lying unconscious on the floor, Rachel stood upright and faced Samara. "Keep away from him, Samara!" she shouted, her voice resounding all around her.  
  
Samara stood, unmoving, watching Rachel through her hair. "No," answered Samara. Her voice sounded so evil and angry that it sent a chill up Rachel's spine. "This game has gone on too long," Samara continued, remaining where she was.  
  
Rachel stepped in front of her son. "If you want him, come and get him!" Fear clearly shown in Rachel's voice, but she stayed bravely in front of her son. She braced herself for an attack from Samara, but received none; Samara remained in the doorway.  
  
"No, bring him here," demanded Samara, just the slightest bit of fear showing in her voice.   
  
Rachel heard Samara's fear, and smiled. "Why don't *you* come here Samara?" she asked, taunting the little girl.   
  
Samara stiff did not move, but a loud *BANG* resounded throughout the room, followed by a high-pitched screaming. Moaning in pain, Rachel clasped her hands to her ears.   
  
After a few seconds, the screaming faded away. Rachel removed her hands from her ears, wincing inwardly from the unbarably loud scream she had heard earlier.  
  
A thick smoke began filling the room. Rachel began coughing, falling onto her knees. "I....can't-breathe," she choked out.  
  
As Rachel continued to cough, she heard a young girl begin to laugh a horrible, inhumane laugh that Rachel had only heard on horror movies.  
  
The smoke cleared suddenly, and Rachel looked at the doorway; Samara had still not moved. "Why don't you come in here?!" Rachel screamed, standing upright once again. All that she got in response was an eerie silence. "God damn it, why are you doing this to me?!"  
  
The laugh filled her ears again. Rachel knew that she had to do something, but what could *she* do? She was dealing with a force a hundred times stronger than she was.   
  
'Wait,' Rachel thought, her eyes lighting up. 'This is *my* dream. I can do or make anything I want.'   
  
Rachel squeezed her eyes shut, thinking of everything Samara had ever feared or hated.   
  
As she opened her eyes, she saw a tattered white dress directly in front of her. She gasped and fell backwards, clutching her son close to her.   
  
Samara stared down at her and, when Rachel was sure that Samara was about to kill her, a voice came echoing all around her. "Now, Samara, why don't you tell me about the pictures?"  
  
Samara turned around and saw the doctor that had tormented her, all those years ago, and kept her at the hospital for so long. She began limping towards the doctor.  
  
"Now, Samara, you should stay in your seat," ordered the doctor. Samara continued towards him, death filled in her unseen eyes.  
  
Quietly, but quickly, Rachel picked up Aiden and sprinted out of the room, slamming the door shut behind her. As she ran past the observation window, she heard the doctor scream a pain-filled scream. She closed her eyes as a spray of blood flew against the glass.  
  
Whimpering in fear, Rachel continued to run, although she did not know why. She heard Samara's wet footsteps coming after her....  
  
*Splish*  
  
*Splish*  
  
As soon as Rachel heard the footsteps, she squeezed her eyes shut once again, picturing another person Samara either hated or feared.  
  
As she rounded a corner, Rachel slipped in a puddle of water and fell hard on the cold, metal floor. Still clinging to Aiden, she heard the footsteps get louder....  
  
*Splish*  
  
*Splish*  
  
"WHY THE HELL ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR ROOM?!" yelled a voice angrier than any Rachel had ever heard in her lifetime.   
  
Rachel immediently recognized the voice as Richard Morgan's. She looked carefully around the corner and saw Richard Morgan towering over his daughter, who was looking back up at him.  
  
With one quick motion, Morgan knocked Samara off of her feet, slamming her against a wall. Samara stood back up, staring daggers at her father....  
  
Suddenly, Morgan sunk down to his knees, clutching his chest. He gasped for breath, but when he received none, he collapsed on the floor....dead.  
  
Rachel's eyes widened as Samara's head moved from her father's corpse to her. She stood up quickly, Aiden still in her arms, and began running.   
  
She was running out of people to throw in Samara's path. Her thoughts trailed to one last person....  
  
Rachel ran and ran, only to be met with a dead end. All energy drained from her. Her legs finally gave in and she fell to the floor, putting her back against the wall.   
  
*Splish*  
  
*Splish*  
  
Samara came into view, and Rachel could do nothing more than watch as Samara closed in on her.   
  
Rachel held in a gasp as she saw Anna Morgan come up behind Samara. Before Samara could even notice that her mother was behind her, Anna had whipped out a black plastic bag and had put it over Samara's head.   
  
Samara thrashed around violently, but could not escape her mother's grip. Finally, Samara's body went limp, and Anna dropped her daughter's body to the floor.   
  
Anna Morgan looked into Rachel's frightened eyes and said softly, "She never sleeps...."  
  
Anna disappeared, leaving only Rachel and Aiden in the hallway. Rachel, her mouth agape, pondered Anna's last words.   
  
She shook her head. "What did she mean?" Rachel wondered aloud. "Everyone's been telling me 'She never sleeps,' but what do they mean?"  
  
Aiden's eyelids flew open, and he stood up. "You'll find out," he hissed, running in the opposite direction down the hall.  
  
Rachel, standing up, began running after her son. "Aiden!" she shouted. "Aiden!" she shouted again.  
  
She could see Aiden in front of her, and she tried desperately to follow him as he darted between the labyrinth of hallways they were in.  
  
As she turned a corner, Rachel nearly knocked over her son. Aiden was standing in the middle of the hallway, pointing to the opposite end.  
  
Rachel looked in the direction that Aiden was pointing, but she saw nothing out of the ordinary.  
  
Suddenly, a cold hand grabbed her by the arm. A horrible burning sensation began covering her arm. She looked down at Aiden, who had her arm in a vice-like grip. She tried to pull her arm away, but failed in doing so.  
  
Rachel looked back down the hallway, where Aiden was continuing to point, and gasped. A large black-and-white picture was now on the wall at the end of the hallway, which showed Samara's well.   
  
Rachel screamed in pain as Aiden's fingernails began to cut into her flesh. She screamed again as Samara's hand appeared, and tried to pull her arm out of her son's grip, but she couldn't; Aiden seemed to be nailed to the spot.  
  
Samara was out of her well, and was limping towards them. As Samara emerged from the picture, an eruption of water spilled everwhere.  
  
Samara came towards Rachel....slowly....slowly....  
  
*Splish*  
  
*Splish*  
  
Rachel whimpered; she had lost.  
  
Samara stepped in front of her, looking at her through her long, black, tangled hair. "Well Samara," began Rachel, tears streaking down her face, "are you going to kill me now?"  
  
"No," replied Samara, to Rachel's great surprise. "You've been bad. You kept Aiden away from me....so I'm going to make you go somewhere *really* bad. Somewhere no one wants to ever, ever go...."  
  
Rachel stood in shock as Aiden disappeared. "He's mine," continued Samara. "I won."  
  
A gust of wind blew by, and Rachel got a small glimpse of all of the evil and pain Samara's eyes held....  
  
  
  
Washington Psyciatric Hospital  
  
Patient Information:   
  
  
  
Number: SM0133  
  
Name: Last: Keller First: Rachel MI: B  
  
Date of Birth: 6/15/76  
  
Enregistered: 11/08/03  
  
Found in a car on the side of a highway in Idaho  
  
Problem: Patient never sleeps  
  
*Finis*  
  
A/N: Yeah, I really need to write a sequel. And I will. Did you like my story?? Well, tell me what you thought in a review! And what a good idea for a sequel would be! 


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